Estranged
by Lougara
Summary: slightly AU; Kururu wished for something interesting to happen, and when it did he realized it was a much bigger and bitter bite than he could chew... ;mild KuruGiro; ON HIATUS.
1. Brick by Brick

Weary eyes fluttered open behind thick glasses, the cracks and fractures in the swirl-oriented disks were the indication of physical damage, and the grumble and grunt that followed confirmed a state of pain and agony.

Sergeant Major Kururu lolled his head from one direction to the other to look around and survey his surroundings.

His lab was buffeted with billows of dark gray smoke, popping sparks of electricity emit from multiple severed wires, and the massive screens of his monster-sized computer devices were all shattered and blank, some dangling by a mere cord or two from their previous hoisted location, while others had fallen out of place altogether to shatter against the keyboard panel and floor. The chair had been knocked down and the keyboard was crinkled, damaged with a few keys missing from the board.

His small sounding 'tch!' was a clear indication that he was very displeased with the outcome of his recent experiment, and the pain only added insult to injury.

He tried to push up to his feet and found that he couldn't, the large humanoid suit he was experimenting on had fallen off its rack and piled on top of him in a heap of arms and legs, lacking a head made moving it harder since he had to do so in person. He freed his hands from the large cluster of wires he could not remember why he was holding onto so tight, and then placed them on the side of the suit and began to push it away.

He wriggled a bit to push the heavy object away from his lower body with a curse and mutter. He needed to make these things lighter for a multitude of reasons, including situations such as this. How many times had things been blowing up in his face the past month? He had lost count out of sheer aggravation of how many they were. He disliked having them backfire figuratively or literally, or fall out of place, more so when they do so right on top of him, it was maddening to say the least.

"Oy, Kururu! Are you all right in there?" was the sudden voice of his leader through the interior's speakers. Since his gate entrance was locked the others were not able to come in to check on him in person, which he considered a good thing to at least save face. Still, the yellow Keronian sighed. This experiment backfired so bad that it attracted the leader's scatter-brained attention? Gracious, he must really be slipping with this one…

"Oy, Kururu! Can you hear us? Answer me!" "Sergeant Major Kururu?" two other voices followed when he gave no reply, which he recognized as the devil Corporal and the ever-forgotten assassin.

Reaching for his headset, he knew he was too far to use the actual speaker, so he opted to redirect the conversation through the headphone communicator, "Just a little setback, people; you act as if you've never seen an explosion before." He laughed with the usual string of 'kuu's through the connection, "Seriously, go away, I'm busy."

For the next few seconds there was silence, but he could detect mild and subtle, hushed and unconvinced whispers between the three, before they agreed to do as told and moved away, leaving the genius keronian to his own device.

And to his own device he was left. Kururu closed the headset connection, and then managed to free himself from underneath the heavy suit and then gave it a swift kick to display his displeasure, disregarding how it made his toe ache, before turning his attention to his now disheveled laboratory. It will take him some time to clean and sort through the damage, which might stagger his next plan for a few hours, if not another day or two.

Then again the leader of his platoon was a slacker at best so he really didn't need to rush unless it was serious.

Frustrated at the lack of proper results with his current project the yellow frog went about gathering the shambled pieces, sorting them by type and availability, then went about organizing the other less important parts of his lab to see if he had spares to use and replace them. He kept mental notes on what pieces were not good and needed to be replaced with something better, from the pieces that he was confused why they did not work as he expected them to, then to the pieces that he did not remember why he had added them to the main blueprint schematics to begin with.

Sergeant Major Kururu sighed, perhaps a bit more heavy-heart then he intended to. He had been feeling a little under the weather and he had no idea why, it was infuriating because he just could not shake off this feeling no matter what he tried!

Taunting the Corporal had done very little to keep him entertained. Their leader was too listless to pay enough attention to any actual planning to invade, far too preoccupied with procrastinating with the figure models he loves to build, and keeping track of the animated series of Captain Gerlock and his motley crew of misfits. The Hinata have been rather void of anything interesting as well; Fuyuki was absorbed in trying to improve his grades and Natsumi indulged in far too many school sports to spend any time home anymore.

Even Saburo had been away for a while because of a tour he was doing with his radio interviews, which left the yellow invader lacking someone to mess with.

A little part of him thought he might just need some friendly company, but he refused to give in to that feeling. He was alone like he always have been, and he was doing just fine!

Feeling listless and tired the yellow invader did a rather sloppy job in getting his workstation tidied up, before abandoning everything altogether and heading to his private quarters. He had a homey little corner under the belly of his lab, providing a secluded royal bedroom, spa and a kitchen.

His rank gave him leeway to spoil himself to the fullest if he chose to, but he never bothered getting more than what he really needed. The Sergeant who was his leader did more than enough damage to cut his salary with his mindless shenanigans, thus forcing the higher ranked member of the platoon to watch his wages if only for the sake of not over-budgeting his own needs and requirements.

Throwing himself onto the bed with a thump and a muffled groan of aggravation, Sergeant Major Kururu remained motionless for a long moment, before he gave a curt grunt and then shifted his body to push to his hands and knees. He crawled his slow way to the pillows and then let his body drop down again to bury his face into their cool softness, his arms snaked around them in a smothering hug to savor the soothing sensation for as long as it lasted.

He wasn't tired and he wasn't even sleepy, but he really felt like lying around and doing absolutely nothing for the rest of the day, he just didn't have the heart or the energy to bother with any of this. Heck! Even the thought of swamping himself in a tub full of curry didn't do much to brighten his mood; he wasn't hungry thus the idea wasn't too appealing at the moment which infuriated him even more.

If the mere thought of curry didn't do much to make him feel better, then there was something wrong with him…

He just wished he had a clue to what it was! This heavy-heart feeling and listlessness left him feeling uninspired and apathetic to the point of driving him up the wall!

Too bad he was too apathetic to give a damn…

He rolled over and lay to his back with a soft sigh and picked up his glasses with one hand to drape an arm over his eyes. A minute later he shifted his arm away to stare at the bright lit ceiling lights, but only for a minute because the yellow Keronian grumbled at their piercing glow and clapped his hands twice. The lights died down in an instant and were replaced with one little night light, showering the room in a soft glow. Kururu let his body slump over the cool mattress for a little longer then rolled over, flat on his belly again.

He was so bored! And yet he had nothing to do; or rather, he couldn't be arsed to do anything.

Maybe if he just laid there for a while something interesting would happen…

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Sergeant Major Kururu did not mean to doze off, and yet when he woke three hours later he found that he felt a little better. Rolling over from his belly to his back, the bed sheets and blanket wrinkled from where he had twisted and turned in his slumber, he released a long exhale and thought that perhaps a little rest was all he needed.

He had woken up at the beeping sound of his communicator, and continued to lie in bed for several minutes after it had went silent. The phone rang again a minute later and he turned his head to stare at it, he made no action to get up or answer; his mind was somewhat a blank. After it had fallen silent a second time the yellow frog listened to the subtle ticking of his alarm clock a few seconds more, expecting the device to ring a third time.

Five whole minutes later he realized it wasn't going to ring, and whoever was trying to give him a call had quit.

Neutral and curious to whom would be calling him on his personal line, calculating the possibilities and percentage of the platoon trying to get in touch with him, the yellow alien pushed to his hands and knees while still on the cushy king sized bed, and then crawled his way towards the night stand where he had placed his yellow mobile device. He picked it up and flipped it open expecting the green and loud Sergeant, or perhaps the red angry Corporal.

He was taken by surprise when he found that it was neither. In fact, it was not someone from the platoon at all.

It was a call from family… not just any family, it was a missed call from his older sister, Rinono.

Confused and perhaps a bit alarmed the yellow invader sat upright on his bedding and fingered the device, debating if it was a good idea to call her back or not and inquire what she wanted. He had not been in touch with his family in a very long time, maybe even going back as far as joining the platoon. He had called, seen and visited them on occasion every so often, but they were very few and far between to the point the gap between visits would be anywhere between four months and a year if not longer.

Last he had seen his sister was a short lived moment at the train station, a shy two weeks before being recruited into the Keroro Platoon upon request. He had finished up a heavy project for the Keron Army and was on his way back to his dormitory located in another town, to rest and recuperate as well as work on smaller things and projects.

Rinono had taken the time to make him a large lunch box and wished him luck, while somewhat complaining how she would have liked it more if he could have stayed the night at her place, or at least stayed in town a little longer. She had been a little cross at him for not even passing by the house to say hello and had taken a bee-line to the train station; despite his shenanigans she had missed him dearly and wanted to have him back in the house again, if only for a little while.

At the time he had been too preoccupied with getting personal things sorted out, and preparing the copy robots for the parade before heading to the Grand Star. The idea of visiting a foreign planet to conquer was enthralling and he was very excited to set foot into his new provable playground, more so since he was enlisted within the same platoon Giroro had been a part of… no one knew at the time, he had his eyes on the Corporal for a very long time.

At first it was revenge and spite for having stuck him in that monstrous plate of curry; going home yellow and twitchy had left his family in alarm and swamped him with undesired attention. After he had gotten over the initial shock and got used to the fact he was no longer blue skinned, the emotions had changed into thoughtful and contemplative. Had the change in skin color really been a bad thing? It had caused a metamorphosis of sorts that as someone with his acute sensitivity and intellect found hard to ignore, it was subtle yet noticeable even at his young, delicate age.

The feelings grew into some sort of epiphany and caused a mental escalation of maturity that heightened his mind in ways he was not quite aware of, and it served as a drive for him to develop his experiments further earning the unintentional favor of his superiors, therefore recruiting him into the army.

Of course being a child at the time he wanted to test things out without relying on artificial intelligence, if only for the sake of collecting actual dependable and more realistic results instead of inaccurate automated ones, and thus always triggered his toys in the laboratory, sending everything into panicked disarray and distorting the people, and perhaps destroying property if the bite was bigger than what he could chew.

He was one to develop a sort of fondness to gambling with luck, even if it meant intolerable pain or even pushing him to the brink of death; he was never afraid when things backfired for they were what drove him to try harder. Sometimes his experiments earned him positive points in the seat of being a high ranked member of the militia, and the praise given soared his pride with flying colors, while other times backfired failures earned his seat as well as his pride a different kind of colored soreness.

Nevertheless, as time went by gambling with his luck became a personal habit and lost its connection to Giroro. After receiving the commendation to join an invasion platoon however, seeing the Corporal's name in the manifest sparked that old flame and a myriad of thoughts coursed through the yellow demon's mind. He wanted to get back to the red Keronian for what had happened, not out of spite any longer but out of sheer playfulness.

He had done a lot of research regarding the red Keronian and learned much of his personality and background, which of course led him into researching his friendship with Keroro and Zeroro who had later changed his name into Dororo. Kururu had no interest in Pururu but kept tabs on her whenever she was brought up nonetheless. Garuru was no exception as well, more so because Kururu had encountered him throughout his growing up years, too.

With a subtle shake of the head, Kururu cleared his mind and focused on the device in his hands, reminded of what he was doing before he started daydreaming and reminiscing with the past. It had been so long since he had last talked to his sister, and he knew for a fact she would not call him unless it was important to some level; she was never one for small talk after all.

She was efficient even if she had nothing to do with the military nor had she taken any training from what he knew. The yellow invader's lips twitched with a small and subtle smile, he knew for a fact that if his sister decided to join the army then his rear was in for a beating if he crossed the line; Rinono might be one of the few people he would not really want to cross on a bad day no matter how much he liked to gamble with death.

In a sense, he guessed that might explain his fascination with aggravating and harassing the redhead of the Hinata family; Natsumi can be so much fun to anger.

Daring the odds as curiosity got the better of him, he decided to avoid a voice call and texted a message asking what she wanted, hit send and then pushed off the bed, he will freshen up and go back to what he was doing in the lab while he waited for a response. Kururu had expected an hour or two before he got a reply, so while in the restroom he was in the process of dapping his face with a towel to dry his skin, the phone rang and alerted him that a reply had been received.

Picking up the device he flicked it open again to read the text message, '_I'm on Pekopon, if you have time meet me at the space parking area._' was her reply.

Kururu stared, pinched the bridge of his nose and then shook his head, he stared at the text message again in an expression of disbelief.

Rinono was on Pekopon! When did she-… how did-… why…?

Boggled and needing an answer, Sergeant Major Kururu wasted no time to hurry out of the bathroom and toss the towel to the bed, pull a leather jacket from his wardrobe, shoved his phone into the pocket along with his wallet and keys, strapped on fingerless gloves and some thick boots, and then hurried towards the exit in order to go to the hanger where he had parked his space bike. Although formal or casual wear were not something he'd even consider in normal situations, he very well knew his sister would prefer if he had something on and not walk around bare for any given number of reasons.

On Keron nakedness was a mundane thing that not many gave a second thought about, clothes and fashion were more an acquired taste to those who enjoyed the hobby of playing dress up, rather than a requirement for decency. Knowing his luck, his sister might be here on a very important mission and needed to clue him in on whatever she was up to; either it be a necessity for her own safety or because it had something to do with him he would never know until he got there.

One thing he loved and hated about Rinono, she would be more than willing to go out of her way to support him in some shape or form, even if it got her in trouble. He wasn't the quiet and timid little tadpole anymore, damnit! She didn't need to pamper or protect him…

Once decked in his outfit the yellow invader hurried out of his private chamber, up to the upper level of his laboratory, made sure to put all systems on autopilot and locked all entrances into his lab for security measures, and then marched towards the hanger for his transportation vehicle got on his bike and with the engine ignited, he opened the hatch leading out of the building. Watching the garage door open in an agonizing and slow motion, giving his bike a minute to rev Kururu took off with a blast and not a single look back.

He darted away from the Hinata residence in a swift dash across the sky and leaving a faint line in his wake; the message from his sister plagued his mind.

Unaware however, navy blue eyes saw his departure from where they were looking up at the sky, the person they belonged to frowned in mild confusion where he was seated in the backyard of the house, a gun in one hand and a rag in the other, the campfire just a few inches away from him had been smothered in order to let the sweet potatoes cook under the hot earth. .

Corporal Giroro frowned; where was the Sergeant Major headed in such a hurry and at this early hour in the morning?

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

It had been about forty minutes at decent speed for Kururu to cross the distance from the Hinata residence and out to the streets, then past the main road towards the Space Parking Area. He did not know what to expect or even what or how to greet his sister, if greet her at all. There was something about the curtness of her message left a bad taste in his mouth, a taste he did not crave for the lack of a proper flavor, to say the least.

Nevertheless, he parked his bike and turned the engine off, pocketed his keys and then marched into the shopping mall. He contemplated giving her a text message to let her know he was there, but thought it might be more interesting to lurk and see if he could spot her before she spotted him.

With his hands in his pockets the yellow invader entered the shopping area and began a slow process of window shopping, making sure to make his way through the building and crossing each and every tailor and accessory shops he could find. Rinono had a thing for fashion and customizing clothes, it was a hobby that she was skilled at. She had always wanted to be a seamstress and yet seemed to be content with her job as a desk attendant or a part-time librarian instead.

When it came down to being organized and efficient, she was a first choice selection, he would vouch for her with no strings attached if it came down to it, too.

It was about an hour later that he sensed a familiar presence when he arrived near the center of the shopping center. He stood before the fountains to sift through the noises surrounding him when one voice pierced through the racket like a silver thread, reaching his ears unhindered.

"Kururu!" came the crystal clear and familiar voice, soon followed by the sound of dainty shoes on smooth marble tiles.

The yellow alien in mention looked around to try and figure out where the voice had come from, only to notice something fluttering at the corner of his vision, it was approaching him fast. Turning to look he was met with a happy smiling face and half-squinted eyes of joy, catching glimpse of those eyes for only a few seconds before the face had thumped against the side of his head, arms slinked under his arms to pull him into an embrace.

Kururu had reached out with his arms to usher her into his arms and accept her hold without thinking, his reaction to her greeting did not register in his mind until after he had placed his hands on the back of her shoulders. Feeling her arms wrapped around him so tight, bringing back long forgotten childhood memories to boot, had sent a strange tingle across his face and he bit back a curse; it was unlike him to be this happy to see her, it was a little embarrassing.

Rinono was wearing a nice-fitted sundress of peach and white with a matching hat, and he would make a wild guess that perhaps she had tailored it herself because he was sure he had not seen this design anywhere before. She had wasted no time to rush towards him in a tight, loving embrace that he returned rather reluctantly, and it didn't look like she was going to let go just yet, either. The flustered invader averted his gaze from the crowed, noting they had earned a few amused stares.

A few seconds later however, he could not help but notice that she seemed a little different, and the lack of a certain something surprised him. He noticed that she had lost her tail, the symbol of her youth. Had he been away from home for so long that his sister had gotten this old already?

Could this have something to do with why she was here?

"Oh, Kururu, it is so good to see you again," she exclaimed with a broad and happy grin. She pulled away from the hug and let her hands slide from his back to rest on his shoulders, "how have you been? I hope you've been taking good care of yourself?" she inquired with a smile.

Kururu did not reply at first, musing to himself how his sister was disgustingly kind and loving she was.

A moment later he took note how… old she looked. Rinono had matured into a lady, and he could already note the faintest crinkled wrinkles at the corners of her mouth and under her eyes. Unlike Chief Medic Pururu he was not surprised his older sister did not take much effort to hide them, either. From what he could tell they seemed to be from either lack of sleep or stress, if not both; then again he was a superior technician and not quite a certified doctor, so his diagnosis could be faulty at best.

Disregarding that since he didn't want to jab her with a taunt just yet, he smiled and replied with a subtle shrug to brush her hands off his shoulders, and then shoved his fists into his pockets again to take a more relaxed and casual standing position, "Oh you know me, health is something I take quite seriously. Ku ku…"

"So says the guy with an obsession with spice," she teased and pinned her fists to her hip, still with an amused smile, "but honestly, Kuru, how have you been? I hadn't been in touch with you in over a year," she said in a somewhat admonishing tone, "I know how married to your work you could get, but the least you could do is send a text or reply when I text you," she added with a pout, and then huffed and then crossed her arms over her chest.

"And since when were you my mother?" he taunted, not spiteful.

"Don't try that sass with me, mister; you know as well as I do who wears the belt in this family," she replied with an arched brow and a challenge in her tone, and yet looking not at all offended. In fact she smiled wider and lowered her arms with a pleased smile, "But really, you really need to stay in touch, we do worry about you, you know." She said in a softer tone, "In fact, considering your current social skills then at this rate you'll never get a girlfriend," she added with a tiny, cheeky grin.

Kururu almost snorted as he gave a twitching grin of amusement; oh if only she knew…

The Corporal was not just his unrequited 'girl' friend per say, but he sure as hell fit the role. Not that he was going to tell his sister that, though. He knew for a fact she had nothing against same-gender relationships and would not be against the thought of him pursuing - or rather stalking- another man, it was just that he did not feel comfortable telling her that tidbit just yet.

Without warning she had pulled him towards her into another embrace, leaving him feeling awkward and with a visible fluster. He complained at her overzealous display of affection in a hushed tone, she laughed and apologized before letting go to take his hands into her own to give them a loving squeeze, then greeting him with another wide, pleased smile.

Kururu would never tell this to anyone, but he had missed being genuinely and unconditionally loved, and the small rebelling sense of pride was smothered out when it tried to complain that this fluffy moment was ruining his image.

He had spent so much time being a trolling sadist and chased everyone away, including potential love interests. However he did not regret any of that, it was in his nature and he loved himself just the way he was, and if others were not willing to look past his dark personality then he had no interest in wasting his time with them.

A part of him would argue over his fascination with aggravating the red skinned Corporal, that Giroro did not like him very much and yet in the same time did not seem to hate him either; Kururu would explain to himself that he is taunting the red invader for the sheer fun and entertainment of seeing the reactions on Giroro's face; nothing more and nothing less. Giroro was a toy he liked to mess with, and though he did harbor a bit of interest in the other he knew better than to let it affect him or his choices.

It would be nice if Giroro did show some sort of reaction he could exploit further, though. The Corporal had been off easy for some time now, the yellow invader thought it was about time he started picking on the red dharma again.

On a whim he took her hand and going arm in arm, Kururu decided to find a suitable place to talk where no passerby or onlookers would eavesdrop on their conversation; he did not need to turn around to notice the stooges hiding behind a large vending machine a fair few feet behind them, either.

In the back of his mind, Sergeant Major Kururu figured this outing could get interesting if his sister was willing to play along. Maybe even give the ones tailing him something to freak about, and perhaps ruffle their feathers in the provable sense of the word.

Pulling her a little closer he slipped his arm from hers to wrap it behind her back and place it on her hip, it came off looking like a rather intimate motion. Rinono was a bit confused and startled at the change in pace and was about to ask what he was doing, when he scooted closer to nuzzle her cheek and silencing her in an instant. He whispered something into her ear with a cheeky grin, well aware her hat might have veiled his face from the ones following him, the position he was holding might have been confused to the gesture of kissing her as well.

After a moment she turned to him with a perplexed expression first before giggling. She nodded with a playful twinkle in her eyes, and then allowed him to guide her towards the nearest shop. The instant she noticed it was a curry shop however, she could not help rolling her eyes and nudging him with her elbow.

This man and his obsessions; he really needed to find another hobby…

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Keroro grumbled; when he had gone looking for Kururu earlier he had found the entrance to the laboratory locked shut and tight, he had asked the others if they knew what the yellow one was up to, only to encounter Giroro in the shooting range who had confessed to seeing their superior leave in a hurry a good ten to twenty minutes before.

Sergeant Keroro knew the instant Giroro mentioned how Kururu was decked in an outfit, that the yellow Sergeant was heading towards the Space Parking Area instead of the Underground Market. Kururu had always impressed him as the kind of guy who would dress appropriately depending on the errand or task he was taking, so dressing in the fashion Giroro had mentioned meant whatever he was dealing with was some hot stuff, and Keroro wanted in on whatever it was Kururu was planning!

How did he know? He could not explain it in words; he just did…

Either it be something to do with his person being the most friendly and closest in comradeship to the yellow demon, or that Kururu favored him over the others he would never know. It took a prankster to understand and appreciate another prankster, after all.

It had taken him some time to reach the Parking area and even longer to locate and recognize Kururu's bike in the parking lot, thus he hid his own bike elsewhere nearby for convenience's sake.

Keroro loved his bike; maintaining and upgrading motorbikes of either Keronian or Pekoponian origin was one of the interests he shared with Kururu, and perhaps a reason they were on good terms with one another, or at least that's what he liked to think.

Tamama had come along only because he was on his way to HQ when Keroro was just about to depart, and then insisted on helping the green Sergeant on his endeavor by keeping him company. With Corporal Giroro still back at base tending to his own tasks, and Lance Corporal Dororo nowhere in sight, the dark tadpole was excited to spend a not-quite-a-date with his beloved leader.

Now, oblivious to the younger one's thoughts, the green one peered past the vending machine to see the yellow demon escort this new lady away looking all lovey-dovey to boot. They had been tailing him for less than ten minutes when the Keronian lady tackled Kururu into a hug, shocking the Sergeant and Second Class Private into a standstill at her brave approach. She was pretty and mature with a charming smile, perhaps a little older than Kururu but an attractive female nonetheless.

"I can't believe it… Kururu has a girlfriend!" Keroro mumbled and sat on the floor with a huff, an elbow on one knee he propped his fist under his chin while he mulled over this shocking discovery.

This was not what he had expected, not even close to the assumption that Kururu was planning some sort of amazing prank on his own, but it was a very interesting development nonetheless.

Keroro could not help but muse over what kind of women Kururu would date; being a creep and a stalker marked him as the unhealthy side of a relationship, and the green invader wondered if the lady knew what she was getting herself into. On one hand it might explain the recent lack of pressure on Giroro who was the constant target of Kururu's harassment attempts, but on another it meant someone else was involved in this.

"But how can anyone find Sergeant Major Kururu attractive!" Tamama argued as he looked quite distressed at the mere thought, disbelieving what he had seen before his very eyes as well. Kururu was a diabolical monstrosity waiting to happen, that demon was incapable of loving someone without some sort of physical or mental harm befalling them; Tamama felt very sorry for the nice lady, and yet felt that since she seemed to happy to see the yellow monster, then perhaps Kururu was treating her well? Or at least, treating as well as he could offer.

"I hadn't the foggiest," Keroro confessed to his companion's question, looking just as distraught as the dark tadpole. "and for that, this requires further investigation!" he blurted.

Standing poised, tall and proud with his arms crossed over his chest, Keroro thought that all they could do for now was tail after the yellow invader and his lady, and hope some sort of explanation would present itself to unravel this mystery.

It was time to play undercover detectives, and for that they needed the perfect disguises so Kururu would not recognize them!

But Kururu was very perceptive, what could they possibly wear to elude the yellow demon from knowing it was them?

Hmm…


	2. Towers Built

**o 0 Chapter Two 0 o . **

The day that had started off slow and boring had soon escalated into a game of tag.

Sergeant Major Kururu had arrived at the Space Parking Area in answer to a message he had received earlier in the day. He had taken his time traveling from the Hinata residence to the shopping center in order to reunite with his older sister Rinono, expecting a worthwhile talk and perhaps some quality family time, only to realize he had been tailed by a very curious pair of the green Sergeant Keroro and his love-struck follower Second Class Private Tamama.

The yellow alien was not at all sore or offended at the thought of being stalked, instead he was amused those two even thought they had the balls to attempt such a thing. Did his scatter-brain leader think he could get the drop on his higher-ranked superior? Honestly? Kururu doubted it, he had been in the spying and stalking business for as long as he could remember and knew the ins and outs of such an occupation, but nevertheless he would invite the green one to try and get the better of him.

He will consider it a treat and a show for the day and something to keep himself on his toes, and as soon as the green one flunks with something he could exploit, he will strike those two down like the god of thunder from the heaven.

In need to flee his pursuers for the fun of the chase, Kururu had escorted his sister who agreed to masquerade as a girlfriend, into the nearest shop he could find.

It was a curry shop and as much as he wanted to grab a bite to eat he did not quite feel in the mood for curry, and thus pretended to look for a table for two at the very back corner of the shop, feigned not being satisfied with their interior and then inquired the man at the counter for availability of a private table. After a bit of exchange and disagreeing with the irate counter attendant, Kururu made his way to the backdoors of the shop without bothering to ask permission, demanding to see the chef, with his rather perplexed sister's arm linked with his own.

They marched crossed the kitchen doorway, past the puzzled attendants inside and hurried towards the backdoor, coming out at a different section of the shopping center. They had made it to one of the more secluded and rather eerie back wards of the building, and as thus Kururu hurried to guide his sister out of the building.

Sure to try and lose the trail of those following him, never once bothering to look back and see if they were even there at all, Kururu guided Rinono outside to the public park-like area that adorned the back side of the shopping center, and soon to a homey little an ice cream shop just past the turn parking lot. Well out of reach and out of view, he waited for a little while to make sure they were not followed before picking a nice corner that was hidden from the window-shopper's view.

Of course since they had to make an order, Kururu requested peppermint and chocolate, while Rinono requested a casual vanilla and strawberry swirl. Seated and comfortable he let her pick a side first before scooting in to sit across of her, then leaned back with his arms over the back rest and an ankle crossed over a knee, he wiggled the tip of his boot with a large smile as he addressed her. "Now then, since we seem to be alone at last, care to tell me what's going on?" he began, curious to what she had to say.

"I could be asking you the same question," she replied, sounding a bit on edge, "were we being tailed by someone?" she asked, a hint of paranoia clear in her voice.

"Naw, just two idiots from my platoon, they're nothing to worry about," he said at first, leaned back against the cushy seat and a small frown shown on his features, "though from the look on your face, I'm guessing you've expected to be followed?" he inquired.

She nodded once and when she said nothing more in reply, Kururu could tell from the shifting in her eyes that she was unsure how to go about explaining without something happening. Being the geniuses in the platoon had taught him to think of a thousand and one ways to get across a block in the road, and this was one of the times he was glad to have quick wits. They could not risk talking in case someone was listening into the conversation, and they could not risk making any gestures in case someone was watching.

They needed a way to limit the conversation to only the two of them, but… how can they achieve that in such a somewhat crowded place? Most of the people in the ice cream shop were aliens and invaders, anything his sister could blurt would cause a lot of panic, if not trouble later on for either them or whatever it is she wanted to discuss, so he had to think of a way to keep the info spill to minimum.

Kururu perked with a smile and lowered his arms off the backrest of the comforter, he gestured for his sister to scoot closer and sit next to him, instead of being there at the opposite of him across the table. Rinono was not sure what he was planning, yet trusting him she complied and shimmied from her spot to sit shoulder to shoulder with her brother. Moments later he leaned against her a little and brought an arm over her shoulder to pull her into a half hug, letting her head rest on his shoulder.

Rinono wasted no time taking off her hat to place it on her lap and lean into the hold, trying not to laugh at how nice and yet somewhat silly it made her feel. It had been ages since Kururu had made an open display of affection, and though she knew this was probably just for show she treasured and appreciated it nonetheless.

The waitress arrived about then with their order and placed it on the table, smiled at the couple and left them to enjoy each others company. During that Kururu had reached out with a hand to place it on his lap and offered it for Rinono with a subtle grin. Rinono looked at it for a second before she seemed to get what he was aiming at, and then reached out to take his hand into her own, the same hand that was holding onto the hat.

With their hands clasped together and the hat shielding them from view, his fingers began a subtle yet felt dance against the palm of her hand and hoped that she could figure out what he was doing. Fortune smiled on the two of them when Rinono recognized it as a code; she hurried to cuddle up next to him to look as convincing as a couple as possible, while her fingers drummed against his palm. It was a silent conversation, a connection both physical and mental that only they shared and understood. There was no chance of any other picking up or eavesdropping on their discussion now.

Where Rinono's expression became more docile and placid, comfortable against his shoulder with her eyes closed and looking peaceful, Kururu's grin twitched and turned from genuine to forced as the seconds ticked by, his glasses reflected the lights as he looked like he was lost in his own world of thought. In fact, that wasn't too far from the truth. What his sister was coding him was grave news indeed, well worth the risk of her going out of her way from Keron to Pekopon just to tell him in person.

Just as he had foreseen, it left an even more bitter taste in his mouth than before…

This did not just affect him in person, it also affected the platoon and their mission on Pekopon altogether.

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Somewhere back at the Hinata residence, in the safe corner within the backyard was a sturdy little red and brown tent.

Inside, Giroro was in the process of sorting out his bullets and organizing his weapon gallery, when the cat being lazy next to him began to move. Ms. Fluffbottom opened her fanged maw with a wide yawn and stretch, flexed her limbs and then shook herself awake before sitting up next to him and licking her paws. Once bathed and clean she began rubbing herself against his sides and back in an open display of affection, which earned her a mellow chuckle from the red skinned invader.

Giroro raised a hand she had nudged away from his magazine uzi-clip to pet and scratch her chin, moving the treatment across her skin and fur to the side of her head, and then to shower her with loving scratched up and down the neck, as well as between the ears. When he felt she had had enough pampering he withdrew his hand to focus back on the task laid before him, needing to keep his gallery organized for quicker and easier access later on.

With the feline sated she stretched herself into a more limber form again, and made her way out of the tent with a lazy walk and twitching whiskers. It was only a few seconds after she had left that a loud mew and hiss of alarm were heard.

Somewhat startled at the aggressive noises she was making, with squared shoulders, a tingle bit into the back of his neck as a familiar presence touched the back of his scalp like cold fingertips. A faint shiver went up Giroro's arms and he shook it off, not wanting it prickling his skin further. Uncomfortable with the foreboding feeling, aware that something was amiss that may or may not require his attention, the Corporal put everything down and pushed up to his feet to see what was upsetting the cat.

When he had expected some sort of aggression approach from foes upon exiting his tent, he was surprised to find the baffling form of the salmon-red colored tadpole with the green helmet, who had pressed his face against the barrier of the glass doors and was making faces from his side of the living room, taunting, or rather traumatizing the kitty.

The instant Tororo spied the baffled face of the Corporal gawking at him in shock, he pulled away from the glass with a cough and fluster before letting go of the curtains to veil himself from view.

Giroro stared. Wasn't Tororo a member of his brother's platoon? What was the kid doing here?

And _What_ was he doing _Inside_ the Hinata Household!

A pang of alarm struck the red alien's chest, and as thus without a second thought Giroro reached out to slide and slam the door open and slapped the curtains away with a shout, aiming to call the child back for a good thrashing, and perhaps get some answers why he was here to begin with.

But the instant he ran into the house he hit his face against something with a '_thunk!_', and he toppled backwards and to the yard again with a loud yelp and grunt.

Ms Fluffbottom was startled and jumped back a few feet with a hiss, alarmed to her friend being knocked back.

The Corporal fell to his rear at first then landed flat on his back right after. Feeling the ache throbbing against his snout and stinging his eyes, Giroro's navy blue gaze swam with tears. He looked up with a glower at the doorway when someone had opened the door further, and the ruffling of the curtains being moved away followed.

At first when his eyes could focus again, Giroro saw Natsumi in her school uniform with a sheepish smile looking down at him, and around her knee-level stood a purple Keronian.

He recognized the new arrival as his brother… who was rubbing a spot on the back of his own head as well.

"As thick skulled as ever I see," Garuru somewhat teased, and then reached out with a hand to help his younger sibling back to his feet, "it is good to see you in good condition, Giroro." He added in greeting, a small toothy smile shown across that stern face.

Confused yet accepting the hand, Giroro was pulled back to his feet. He gave a small thanks to the purple frog's complement as well as his help. The Corporal was a bit flustered, having slammed into his brother like that; it was embarrassing yet not a hard blow to his pride, just awkward. He dusted his seat then turned to his older sibling, then to Natsumi, wanting to ask what was going on when he caught Tororo's 'pu pu' sounding chuckles from somewhere beyond the couch.

Natsumi and Garuru stood by the glass doors leading to the backyard, while Fuyuki and Angol Mois sat on the couch, while he stood at the threshold of the doorway, and Tororo stopped hiding behind the couch. The little tadpole approached his leader with a small chuckle, standing at the side of the couch a little behind Garuru. The Corporal scanned the rest of the room and was a little surprised to find only two members of Garuru's team present; where were the others?

Giroro then noted Tororo was sending the cat a few feet behind him a taunting look, and Ms Fluffbottom did not look at all amused at the little brat. Nevertheless, the cat settled down seeing no battle was going to break out and then decided to approach the red frog. She settled besides him with a mew and Giroro seemed to not notice her at all, he was in a locked stare with his brother, as if the two of them were having a private conversation of their own.

A second later Giroro spoke, "You really need to stop popping in without a warning, Garuru." the scolded, a little irate.

The purple lieutenant smiled and crossed his arms over his chest, regarded his younger brother with a hint of mirth and then tilted his stance a bit to the side, "Whatever my reasons be for not calling beforehand are not the issue to discuss right now, Giroro." He said in a casual tone, but his sibling very well knew that tone of voice; Garuru was here because he had bigger fish to fry and whatever it was Giroro was involved.

"I came here today with Recruit Tororo on a mission;" the purple invader said at first and gestured for the young tadpole to come closer, and when the young technician did as told the lieutenant placed a hand on the young one's shoulder, "we have been given orders to escort you as well as Sergeant Major Kururu to the Grand Star post haste." came the blunt and clear declaration for all to hear.

The collection of shocked and confused cries of surprise from all who were in the room, including the cat, almost went unheard to Garuru's unmoving and unaffected form. Natsumi and Giroro gawked at that announcement, neither having an idea what that meant or why it was happening.

"The Grand Star?" Fuyuki spoke from the other side of the room; he was then on the edge of his seat at the thoughts coursing through his head, "Isn't that the Keron race's mother ship?" he exclaimed, sounding far more happy and excited than anything else. He even had a hint of sparkling glister of stars in his eyes. Oh how it would be if he could go there and scout a Keronian vessel with his very own eyes, it would be so exciting!

Flat-out ignoring Fuyuki's inquiry, Garuru moved his hand off Tororo's shoulder to clasp his hands together behind his back, and then continued as he directed his full attention to his dazed brother, "We will receive our mission briefing as soon as we land. I have attempted to get in contact with Sergeant Keroro as well as Sergeant Major Kururu for the past hour, but they are not returning the calls and we're not receiving signals of their communicators, thus they could not be located through regular means." he said and paused to let that tidbit sink. "Would you, by chance, have an idea where we could find them? Our rendezvous is in twenty solar hours. The sooner we leave the better." He explained.

Giroro bit back a mutter and curse; if Garuru could not get in contact with Keroro then chances are the green imp had gone after Kururu; therefore they were both supposed to be at the Space Parking Area causing whatever riot Kururu had been after…

"Hold on just a second!" Natsumi began with a huff, "You still hadn't answered my question! What's so important that Giroro and Kururu both have to leave at such short notice?" she said at first, then stammered, "I mean, okay, Kururu can go to hell for all I care, but what does this have to do with Giroro? He's a freeloader and his absence wouldn't make much of a difference either, but still…" she muttered, looking a bit pensive and flustered, and avoided the red keronian's gaze in particular.

Ignoring the hurt and crestfallen gleam in his little brother's navy blue eyes, Garuru lowered his head just a bit and huffed a small laugh, "I have no reason to explain anything to you," his reply was unfeeling and sharp. "Remember you are the enemy," he then turned to look at her, tossing a rather pointed and challenging glance her way.

Natsumi grit her teeth and clenched her fists in rage, "What! So you come uninvited, go into HQ and when that stupid frog turns out not to be there, you think you can just waltz in and do what you want?" she shot, tone hot and angry. "And also I can throw that right back at _you!_" she exclaimed, "You are the enemy and I have no reason to trust this isn't some sort of ploy to scatter the stupid frog's team so you can attempt a full takeover while no one is looking." She growled.

Fuyuki had snapped out of his excited daze in time to hurry and try to calm her down. That didn't stop her from giving Garuru an irate sneer nonetheless, and yet all it ever did was make Tororo nervous; the tadpole hid behind his leader and muttered how scary this Pekoponian creature was.

"I swear if you try anything funny I'll stomp the purple out of you." The hotheaded redhead of the Hinata family snarled, making her distaste known.

"Natsumi! Please, calm down." Giroro called out, both terrified that she would anger his brother into attacking her, and part exhilarated to see her pumped and ready to kick some ass; though he had to admit that she did not stand a chance against Garuru, thus he did not want her tangling with someone he himself could not yet defeat.

That is when Mois approached the bickering crew, looking timid and nervous yet needing to cut into the conversation, "Corporal Giroro, I am really worried about Uncle; it's unlike him not to return my calls and I've been trying for an hour; can we say available but not responding?" she said while she fingered her device, that was actually a weapon of mass destruction. Her golden-yellow eyes gave a shimmer as she looked at the uneasy red invader, "If you know where uncle went, can you help us find him?"

Giroro stared at those dazzling and innocent eyes for a long awkward moment, looked at Natsumi being cranky with Fuyuki trying to calm her, then at his brother who expected him to cooperate without complaint, at Tororo who was still uneasy regarding the whole thing, and then at Mois who continued to peer at him with pleading kitten eyes.

The red invader palmed his face and gave a loud, aggravated sigh. This was going to be a very long day; he might as well call Tamama and Dororo and let them in on the situation, because he sure as hell did not want to deal with this hassle alone.

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Meanwhile at the Space Parking Area, Kururu reached across the table to pick up the spoon and take a few scoops of his melting ice cream.

He was never a fan of sweets, but the tangy spice of mint mixed with chocolate dazzled his tongue in a pleasant tingle, so it would do to keep him in a good mood. "So what next?" he murmured in a low, soft tone, then turned to her while she continued to stay leaned against his side long after he had withdrawn his arm.

Rinono shook her head, no; she did not know how to answer that.

Kururu sighed, the pleasantries of their meeting now gone and replaced by a foreboding and heavy fog of discomfort.

If what his sister told him is true then his playtime on Pekopon will be cut short and the invasion would be inevitable.

As much as he had to admit to himself that the reasons they've lasted this long were because of Keroro's fascination with the Gundam modules, Giroro's complicated love life with Natsumi, and his continuous shenanigans of backing out of a full scale invasion because he lost the thrill of the fight, there was no stopping the Keron Army from taking matters into their own hands and claiming the entire planet under their hold, regardless of who stood in their way.

Pekopon itself was not hard to conquer, the platoon had come close to taking full control countless times, but the ones that were in the count were the times he himself had aborted mission on the last second, simply because he wanted to. If Pekopon was conquered then it will just be added to their record like some stamp of approval, and then they'll be moved out and towards another planet to labor over ways to control it all over again.

Kururu would admit there was a lot of Pekopon he wanted to explore, so many things he wanted to take his time to unravel the mysteries of, hence why he had been stalling and messing around instead of trying to give it his fullest for the past four years.

Trying to take over this little speck in the galaxy didn't mean much when added to a record, but as a person with a thirst for exploring the unknown and an appreciation for knowledge, much like Fuyuki, the treasures that he found within the bellies and hidden folds of this world were what interested him and made him not want to leave.

There were many traces of Keronian as well as other alien-life origins littered about and across this planet, as if thousands of creatures tried to take over this spot in the galaxy time and time again, only to change their mind and leave Pekopon. Pekopon had had so much in common and in relation with Keron that he found it hard to ignore; he knew his people and ancestors have repeatedly tried to take over the planet, only to back out of it for some reason or another, he wanted to figure out why, and being forced to leave will not sit well to his personal standards.

From watching the Pekoponian children play and grow, the teenagers muck about their life and make drama out of nothing, the love incited quarrels, to the adults who fascinated him with their own entitlement issues. His favorite part was the teenagers; those kids were so clueless and fun to meddle with, but as soon as they figure out his ploy it bites him on the rump. Not that he'd mind, he'd been punked at his own game more than once which sort of balanced out the odds and made it more fun.

If he had won all the time then this game would have lost his interest ages ago…

Of course, being an adult male with a strong interest in certain activities when it came down to females of other races was only part of the equation; it was not easy to find precious gems such as Hinata Aki on other planets and as disadvantageous as having her run tests he still liked her. Aki was a mature, level-headed, adventurous and a wild card who was always up for a good challenge, it was one of the things he loved about her.

He really couldn't fault himself for falling for ones who were older than him though; he found adult females far more attractive and alluring than those who were younger than himself… who were likely to be more annoying… or too innocent for that matter.

The mere thought of overwhelming innocence made him tense; any tighter and his glasses might crack from the tightness of his knit brows.

For a contemplative moment, Kururu found himself wondering where Giroro fit in the picture; the scarred man was a mix of the things he liked and the parts he didn't like, it was neither sensual nor sexual and yet it ignited a spark in the yellow demon, a sensation he could not put words to.

Yanked out of his thoughts, Kururu straightened up with a jolt at the loud, thumping sound of something droning against the earth, forcing tableware to shake and rattle against their holsters with sharp clanks and jingles, followed by people giving low cries of alarm, and then the walls of the ice cream shop began to shake and rattle more violently as the seconds ticked by. The customers who were there had also jumped in their seats in confusion at the loud and increasing rumbling, a wave of panicked cries began when fear started shaking the foundation of the very building like an earthquake.

Kururu wasted no time ignoring the ice cream cup in favor of wrapping his arms around his sister, who had jumped in surprise at the rumbling as well. The two locked in an embrace, holding one another offered them a sense of comfort and safety until the shaking had passed.

"Was that an earthquake?" Rinono gasped, a hand on her heart and her eyes wide turned to her brother; the experience unsettled her yet did not scare her, Kururu could tell she was not frightened, just surprised.

"I don't think that was an earthquake," Kururu muttered; he had experienced earthquakes and had caused a few himself, and he sure as hell knew that rumbling was fabricated.

After all they were miles above sea level and the parking area being constructed by aliens was levitated in the air, thus earthquakes were impossible for both location and foundation origins prevented such a thing from happening. The area was like a sky island and therefore the mere thought of earthquake occurring were unheard of. The only thing they had to worry about would be if the levitation engine malfunctioned and they were under the risk of plummeting into the ground below, but if that was the case then the alarms would be blaring and the peacekeepers would be running around giving warnings and securing an escape route for the people aboard.

That is when a loud and painfully familiar laugh of 'Haaaaaaah Ha Ha Ha Ha!' started somewhere in the distance, growing closer and louder as the seconds ticked by once more.

Sergeant Major Kururu never got the chance to warn his sister to grab her hat and run, because a large, bulky figure smashed through the front window with knees together and arms crossed before his shadowed face, the agile and nimble alien landed with his boots in a sleek acrobatic movements onto the marble floor with only the jingles of shattered glass, and the squeak of his footwear rubbing against the ground.

The figure then ricocheted off the ground and back-flipped three times into the air, only to land on the tabletop right in front of them with a loud thump. The rough landing sent the ice cream cups flying up a good few inches only to land and hit the floor with a smash and shatter, as well as having the ice cream dollops they contain to hit the floor with loud splattering. The person who had arrived in such a destructive entry held the overzealous and heroic pose for a long second, before he twisted himself around to face the astonished pair with a low 'Go!' sound escaping his non-visible lips.

The brilliant and narrowed yellow glint of his visor within the silver helmet shone bright and shiny under the glaring lights of the ice cream shop.

Space Detective Kogoro (556) had arrived, as flamboyant, loud, laughing and flashy as he could ever be.

Kururu, for a nano-second, wished if he could crawl under a rock and die…

Rinono however, arched a skeptical brow and glanced at her brother, hoping for some sort of explanation to this strange man's identity. She could tell her brother had a pretty good idea who this person was from the aggravated sneer on his features.

Said brother felt his lips and brows twitch in suppressed aggravation, having a pretty damn good idea why someone like Kogoro would target him and his companion out of everyone else within the shop. He could feel it in his bones; somewhere outside Keroro was laughing his ass off and waiting for a good show from the yellow invader. Oh, that arrogant twit was asking for it! The agitated Sergeant Major was sure to leave a mental note-to-self to give the green pest a proper reply, just as soon as he got back to base he was going to make sure his green imp of a leader received his 'thanks' ten folds as comeback to this little stint.

But of course, before the yellow one could even utter a sound, Kogoro had wasted no time shifting into different battle positions, before swinging an arm and pointing at his lady.

"You!" he exclaimed in his too-audible and joyous tone, making her jump in her skin with a squeak.

Rinono blinked once and then pointed at herself in question, the helmet-wearing alien remained unmoving for a second, and then shifted into a swift tall standing and poised stance while he continued to speak, "What is Love!" he said, not quite sounding like a question, but not a statement either. Ankles together and arms crossed over his chest in a heroic stance. "I will protect those who need protection, the guardian of the weak and upholder of justice!" he announced, and again shifted into more hero-like victory poses as if trying to show off his skills, unaware of how out of place he seemed compared to the rest of the people in the shop.

Rinono stared, even more confused and feeling far more awkward then before. She turned her wary glance to her brother who seemed to resist the urge to plant his face against the table, or just phase a blaster and shoot this nimrod to kingdom come.

She made a gesture of asking him if this person was sane, and Kururu shook his head in negative, so she offered a weary grin, "Well then, want me to try and kick his face in?" she joked in a very hushed voice, which earned her a wide grin from her brother.

"I invite you to try, but I'm not going to save you if you can't handle it; ku ku," he answered with a casual shrug.

"I guess this requires a tactical retreat," she said in a soft whisper to her kin again, and then turned her attention to the dope standing on the table. Rinono brushed her dress and stood up with a reprimanding pose and tone, donned on her hat again and then pointed a lecturing finger at the Space Detective looking down at them, "You there! Don't you know it's rude to stand with your dirty shoes on a table? You step down right this instant!" she demanded.

Much to Kururu's pleasure, Kogoro was taken aback by her demand, looked around the mess he had created at his entry, and then hesitated for only a second before doing as told. The Space Detective was reluctant, giving the pale-orange Keronian lady a look. The Major was not sure what the other youth was thinking, Kogoro's lack of expression was one thing and the helmet he wore did not help clarify matters any, either.

"Now look at the mess you've done! Go pick up a broom and clean it." She pointed to the messed up, dirt and glass shard littered floor, then at the disheveled looking shop attendant, "and while you're at it, you will mop the floor and fix the windows, and help the nice man with the customers for the rest of the day, understood?" Rinono continued.

Kogoro gave a salute, "Of course! My duty to uphold justice, wrongdoings in hindsight shan't be overlooked! GO!" he replied and hurried to run past the baffled aliens in the shop to look for a broom and bucket in order to start cleaning, laughing all the way.

"Sometimes you amaze me, Ku ku…" the yellow one chuckled.

"It runs in the family," she laughed in response, she then took his hand into her own and the two hurried out of the shop, sure to slap money on the counter as payment for their neglected treats. "Now let us get out of here before that weirdo gets a clue, I have no idea who that guy was but I sure hope we don't bump into him again," she murmured.

"Oh I don't know, he can be entertaining too, sometimes." The yellow one chuckled once more.

At first his sister was dragging him away from the shop towards the parking lot, when she was about to say something again she was interjected by the loud laughter of Kogoro, he had returned and was running towards the pair with his broomstick in one hand and the bucket in the other, a rather visible trail of dust trailing behind him. The Space Detective demanded that they hold it right there, flailing the things he was carrying around and clobbering and clonking passerby aliens in his wake.

Upon turning around at the sound of the panicked screaming and cries of surprise, Kururu noticed there were two other cloaked shadows tailing after Kogoro as well; one had a hint of green and the other a deep shade of purple-black.

Oh, so the game was on, was it? This should be interesting…

"I think you just jinxed it," Kururu laughed again.

Rinono made a garbled angry noise at seeing the crazy youth was hot on their trail. "I knew I shouldn't have worn a skirt for this!" she muttered, staggered in her run to pluck off her shoes, and then with their straps held tight between her fingers she took her skirt in a bundled grip in order to lift it a bit over her knees, just so she could run faster.

Rinono and Kururu continued to run with Kogoro hot on their trail, and of course Keroro and Tamama chasing right after him.

Tamama started panting with his eyes bugged out in infuriated irritation, "Hot damn, she's fast!" he cried in what looked like a torn expression of anger and admiration. The dark colored tadpole in the blue-decked Pekoponian suit turned to look at the green one with a mutter, "If we keep this up Sergeant Major Kururu will know it's us for sure!" he argued.

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Keroro shouted, decked in a blue suit as well, and then put double the effort into running. Catching up to speed with Kogoro, the two were coming up neck to neck. "Kogoro! Put more effort into it! Our target is running away!" he complained to his childhood friend, "You don't want to disappoint us, right? You can catch then if you push a little harder!" he encouraged, somewhat.

Kogoro, always one to oblige for having a strong belief in his friendship with the green frog gave a curt nod of agreement, and then put more speed into his run, flailing the bucket and broomstick when more. Shoulder to shoulder with a terrifying shout of accelerated speed, Keroro and Kogoro made a mad dash towards the two Keronians running just a few feet ahead.

Just as the two humanoid pursuers were in sync and leaped out to attempt to tackle and grab the smaller two, they had failed to hear Tamama's warning shout… which left them slamming into the wall with a loud crash.

Nailed to the stone barrier up to their shoulders, they remained stuck there for a few seconds when gravity decided it was against her laws and let their heavy bodies drop, Kogoro dangled with his head stuck to the wall, still holding onto the broom and bucket, while Keroro was dislodged from his suit as it disconnected from his body, leaving his head still nailed to the wall, and it fell to the earth with a clustered thump and a tangle of wayward limbs.

Tamama skid to a halt just a few feet away from the dazed figures of the two morons he had troubled himself with keeping company, and then glanced back at the path they had come from since it was where their target had chanced course to.

He was amazed to say the least; whoever this lady was her skills would explain why she was hanging out with Sergeant Major Kururu, that's for sure.

The lady Keronian had been dragging Kururu with her and running in a straight line towards the side of the building, where she was pumped and going strong the yellow one was staggering in his run as he could not match up to her speed. She had somehow yanked Kururu forward before her and pulled him into her arms just as they were a mere few feet away from colliding with the wall, but then she surprised him with her grace when she leaped in an impressive display of agility and strength, ran a few steps up and then ricocheted herself by kicking off the wall and into the air, she twirled herself around to pass over the two idiots who had jumped to tackle them, and landed safe a few feet away with yet another loud thump.

The lady did not even waste another second after landing, never losing momentum or speed for that matter, even as her hat was thrown off due to that aerodynamic action she paid it no mind because Kururu had reached out to grab it before it got too far away. In fact, she had been so focused on the task of running away with the yellow Keronian, her feet hit the ground running and shifted Kururu's weight from her arms and over a shoulder as if he did not weight much at all.

The tadpole stared as she continued to add distance between herself and her pursuers. Kururu was tossed over her shoulder like a sack and the Major was laughing as he put on her hat, waving a hand at him as if this whole situation was the funniest scene he had ever witnessed.

No more than a moment later the lady jumped over the rails and down to the lower floors, probably heading towards the parking lot for her escape vehicle.

All the while what infuriated and boggled Tamama the most was the fact Kururu was laughing the entire time!

What was _wrong_ with the guy, did he not realize he was being taken _hostage!_ _What Was So Goddamn Funny?_

The dark colored youth felt his body flare with suppressed hate and anger, he wanted to smash the ever living guts out of something right there and then…

At that instant, Tamama decided to help Keroro and Kogoro out of the wall was a priority; if this lady was trying to kidnap Kururu then he had to save him! Although he doubted that was the case since Kururu was not trying to escape; then again Kururu pretty much never bothered trying to escape even when he was in danger for any number of reasons, because in the end he always ends up coming out of it unscathed one way or another.

Even if the Major could handle himself just fine, it still did not make the Second Class Private feel any better.

They had no idea who she was or what she was planning, and if she was capable of escaping with such little effort then she might be far more challenging than they thought. Kururu was an asset to their platoon and regardless of who she was, he couldn't just let her run away with him!

Tamama hurried towards Keroro who was trying to pull his face from the stone wall, ignoring Kogoro who continued to dangle there like an idiot, he had to get his leader out of this little predicament.

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Elsewhere at the boarders of the parking lot and a good fifteen minutes later, hidden by the shade of the building Rinono had stopped to catch her breath.

The yellow one no longer over her shoulder and had been shifted to cradle in her arms as she was about to lower him back to his feet, but had stopped during the action to bounce his body in her arms as if he was a giant baby, thus earning his confused stare. "You've lost weight," was her comment and continued to weight his mass in her arms a moment longer, a contemplative frown shown on her features, "if I didn't know any better I'd say they hadn't been feeding you at all." she somewhat grumbled.

Kururu felt a vein bulge on the side of his forehead, he smiled nonetheless, "And you've gained weight, obviously. If I didn't know any better I'd say you've joined the army." He jibbed with a low, strung laugh.

"I'm six months into basic boot-camp training actually," She replied with a sheepish smile and allowed her sibling back to his feet. "But we can talk about that later; we need to meet up with Shupepe, he was supposed to cover for me while I delivered the message." She muttered, looking irate. "He probably found a nice skirt to chase and forgot all about this."

"I don't blame him nor would I be surprised. The ones following us are known to be quite devious, Kuu ku ku…" he amended, smoothed his jacket and then adjusted her hat, not bothering to give it back to her just yet, "But if Shupepe is here as well then this might be far more… _delicate_ than you said it was." He said, sounding a bit cross.

Rinono sighed and brushed an earflap from over her shoulder, tired eyes turned to her brother, "Yeah, my bad. I guess I underestimated the situation, huh?" she smiled, sheepish.

The yellow one shrugged, "I don't blame you, they're unpredictable at best," he answered, and after a moment of silence he decided to continue, "Though that still doesn't answer my question; what do we do now?"

"I'm not sure." She admitted with a heavy sigh, "All I know is that your platoon might get disbanded and sent back to Keron, while you will be forced under lease again for an undefined amount of time, and depending on how the Admiral plans on playing the cards it'll either be destructively glorious, or end in blood and tears." she explained, her expression more grim than before. "Kuru, I'm really worried. The Admiral just isn't in her right mind anymore, I tried to talk to her but she just won't listen to me anymore." She reached out to clasp her hands on his shoulders with a desperate grip, "I know I might be asking too much but would you try to talk to her?"

"Being a block-headed bullfrog runs in the family, remember? Ku ku," was his casual reply, hands shoved into his pockets he surveyed their surroundings as he continued to speak, "Whatever or wherever this is going, I do not think it'll end up pretty regardless if I talked to her or not. I lack proper information regarding the whole situation and the overview alone does not bode well." He surmised, looking contemplative before turning to look at his companion again.

Rinono was giving him a hopeful look while she withdrew her hands to place them one atop the other over her chest, and though he did not want to disappoint her he knew she'd rather have the harsh truth shoved at her face than a sugar-coated lie, "Besides, considering reverse psychology, chances are trying to convince her otherwise will only make her more determined to prove me wrong;" he said, his tone calm and casual, his pose and demeanor too relaxed as well, "you know her better than I do, she's too headstrong with stuff like this; she and I have been at each others throats for as long as I could remember." He confessed.

No more than a second later Kururu straightened up and turned around, his sister was confused at his jolt and peered past his shoulder across the open plot where the parking area lay, and her eyes widened at the sight of the three weirdos making a mad dash right towards them! With an aggravated curse, Kururu wasted no time grabbing her hand and making a run for it, his free hand on the hat so it wont fly off, he had to get to his bike before the three stooges caught up to him.

Rinono noted that the three weird people running their way were screaming for Kururu to hold his ground and stop, whoever they were she guessed her brother did not want to deal with them so she tried to keep up the pace as they ran. Kururu led her across the parking area and they ran around the building, and though her and Shupepe's vessel was parked nearby it was pointless to tell her brother because she did not have the keys.

They continued to run, dodging confused and startled aliens and parking vehicles alike, trying to throw off the ones following them.

By the time they managed to get to Kururu's bike, the yellow frog hurried to mount it and then ushered his sister onto the free space behind him. Rinono straddled the seat and wrapped her arm around his torso, taking a moment to pick off her hat from the top of his head and tuck it between them. There was no need for that thing getting in his face or flying off. She took a second to glance at the direction of the ones chasing them, and the trio advanced towards them in an impossible speed!

"Kururu! They're gaining on us!" she called out in alarm.

It only took Kururu a moment to start the engine, shout for her to hold on tight, and then jump-starting the bike right off the ground and into the open air seconds before Kogoro and the two idiots arrived, the Major put his foot on the peddle and the engine roared, the back engines blasted with fire as the Keronian pair zoomed off, leaving a vanishing orange line across the sky in its wake, accompanied with a string of laughter from Kururu and a rather startled scream from his lady.

Keroro, never one to miss a beat, made a flashy command for the others to get to their vehicles and go after Kururu.

Back to the siblings, Rinono turned to look back at the ground and was glad to find their pursuers were nowhere in sight. "I think we lost them," she called aloud so her brother will hear her, but instead of a reply the bike's speed lessened and Kururu had turned his arm around to offer her a pair of goggles. The pale-orange Keronian took them without complaint and put them on before adjusting her grip on her younger brother. "So where are we going?"

Switching on the anti-barrier and cranking it up to maximum, the Major rendered the two of them invisible to everyone around them including their undesired followers, "Somewhere they'll never find me; or rather the last place they'll ever look, Kuu ku ku!" was his mellow answer.

And with a burst of speed and another startled cry from his sister, Kururu bolted on ahead towards his destination.


	3. Stone by Stone

**. o 0 Chapter Three 0 o . **

It was a bright sunny day with a cool pleasant breeze, and yet apprehension plagued the mind of a certain red skinned alien frog.

Giroro crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back against the seat, a displeased scowl across his face. The day had started off rather well, and then for no reason started tumbling downwards. He glowered at the results that were being submitted into the computer screen before him, not at all happy with what he was seeing. He had been hoping for some positive notes to be delivered, but only the negative ones seemed to find their way into his device.

He was currently located within the main bridge of the Garuru platoon's space shuttle. He had been offered to take one of the three seats that were available seeing the members of the Garuru platoon were not present. Giroro chose to pick First Class Taruru's seat because it was right in front of Garuru's seat and right next to Tororo, making communication easier between the three. The little tadpole had been a bit wary of him being so close in the beginning, for reasons Giroro was not quite sure of, but then seemed to cope with his presence and soon becoming neutral.

First Class Private Taruru, Lance Corporal Zoruru, and Chief Medic Pururu had already been granted time off and were therefore left to their own device. The Corporal expected them to be waiting for them on the Grand Star, but his brother had hinted that they were somewhat forced on standby and it was possible they would not be in contact with them during this particular mission. Whether or not they may encounter them on the Grand Star was open for debate, however.

Garuru sat on the high perched position behind him, overlooking the working staff before him, arms crossed as well and looking at the camera feed window before them.

Tororo, the only other member present, had taken control of the vessel and was taking them towards the Space Parking Area.

The Corporal was not pleased with the settings, more so because he had been prevented from contacting the members of his platoon. He wanted to get in touch with Dororo at the very least but Garuru had ordered him not to, snatching his communicator from his hand when he tried to defy his brother's command. With Tamama out of reach as well Giroro found himself at a disadvantage, and for the sake of not making Natsumi any more tense, anxious or irate at his passive-aggressive brother he was forced to comply with Garuru's orders to join them on this search.

Natsumi was reluctant about letting him go, and yet whatever she was thinking she chose not to speak her mind, she only asked him to watch his back and be careful. Giroro smiled and nodded once, knowing full well that things from that point onward will be more a guessing game for how things will play out.

The vessel took a good thirty five minutes to get to the Space Parking Area, but Garuru ordered the Recruit not to land and to continue levitating above the area for a moment longer. The purple lieutenant then started typing something on his own keyboard and took control of the screen feed, scanning the park he seemed to focus the zoom-in lens on a certain space craft. Giroro watched as a document of sorts appeared on the side of one large screen and followed by scan results, the image of a rather familiar Keronian appeared.

"Vehicle owner identity confirmed, pu pu," Tororo spoke and typed something on his keyboard, "the Admiral was right, they did get here before we did, pupu; that vehicle license is registered on the records and is equipped with a space-jumping engine." He added, typed a bit more and then stopped to glance over his shoulder at the lieutenant, "Shall I contact the secondary squad?"

Garuru stared at the screen for a moment longer before he shook his head in negative, "No, there is no need. Contact the security and have the vessel confiscated, our target will have no place to run and will be forced to either confront them for clarification, or use other methods of transportation." He replied. "Contact our shadows and have them report in their current standing."

"Affirmative, sending out message now, pupuu," Tororo replied.

"Garuru, I hope you plan on explaining this soon, because I'm really starting to question the powers at play here." Giroro complained as he turned around to scowl at his higher ranked brother. The mention of shadow agents being deployed was more than enough to alarm him; just what exactly was going on here?

"No harm will befall Sergeant Major Kururu, I assure you; the puppets involved have no interest in harming him and neither do we, this is more a game of who can acquire his presence the longest, I'm afraid." The leader explained in a collected and calm tone, "Think of it as a more tactical game of hide and seek, I suppose." He added, sounding a bit mellower he glanced at his wary sibling, "So how about it, Giroro? Care to join your brother's team to see if we can win with our combined efforts?" he offered, almost a jib.

Giroro made no attempt to reply, still not quite pleased with the whole situation as his paranoia was not quelled.

There was a low beep and Tororo made a long strung typing moment before he spoke, "Shadow Agent Dasasa had reported in; Sergeant Major Kururu and Recruit Rinono had been confirmed to have fled the vicinity, current location is unknown and the tracking bug is not responding. There is a high chance of a super anti-barrier being used to block the signal, thus the bike is untraceable." The little one reported with a rather agitated tone, and then he took a moment to look across the new flood of text swamping his screen.

Tororo continued, "Report claims that they had been chased off by three… crows?" the salmon colored tadpole paused to try and figure out if he had translated the script wrong, or if that was really what was written; then choosing to disregard that possible error he continued to read out the message, "Chief Medic Shupepe had been located at the outskirts of the shopping center, unit Three is on the move to peruse him."

"Shupepe?" Giroro spoke up, finding that name awful familiar.

"Perhaps he is but another cog and wheel in the grand scheme of things regarding our mission." Garuru informed in a casual tone, and then sent his young brother a look, "He is also Sergeant Major Kururu's older sibling, as is Recruit Rinono.".

Giroro gawked in disbelief, having not expected that piece of information, "Kururu has siblings?"

"Puu pupuu! You'd be surprised with the stuff we can dig up from old records," Tororo chuckled in a cheeky manner; his fingers continued their rapid tapping across the keyboard, writing commands and receiving information feedback. "As much as I hate having to work with that fool, I have the feeling this is going to be a pretty cool mission, Puu pu pu," he added with a leer. "So as long as he doesn't piss me off, I like to think this is going to be a show to remember, puu pupu…"

Giroro did not comment on the tadpole's remark, instead he turned back to look at the image of their target flickering just a bit on the screen.

He was sure he had seen that face before, and he would recall a time where he and Keroro had shared a meal or two with this pale blue Keronian. Could it be that they had been in contact with Kururu and his family long before they had come together as a platoon? If Shupepe was a medic and at the same rank as Pururu, then that would hint that their mission may or may not include heavy body harm, and the position of medic was required to ensure that things run smoothly.

"This just came in!" Tororo said aloud in a rather surprised tone, "Shadow Agent Dasasa reports that Shupepe had used a smoke bomb to flee the scene! They are now in pursuit. The space craft had been acquired by the security staff so he has no form of transportation available that we know of."

"Coordinates?" Garuru questioned, now his own fingers were typing rapid and fast across the keyboard, the image of Shupepe and his vessel vanished from the screen and replaced with the map of the shopping center, and a few more windows with even more text started popping and overlay one another.

For a second, Giroro could not help a twinge of envy…

Garuru's team even when knocked down to only two members seemed to work so well in sync without much effort, unlike his efforts always gone to waste with his own team mates; why couldn't the Keroro platoon be this efficient? Sure he and Dororo were the only ones in sync regardless of the situation, but having the whole team on the same wavelength would have made invading Pekopon so much easier, if only they put their minds into it.

Then again they all had their faults, and he was no exception; his attachment to Natsumi had more than once hindered the invasion and he was man enough to admit it, if only to himself.

"Thirty two disagrees south east, last seen at block D5, vehicle confiscated is located at the far south at block G4, the shadow agents are on pursuit." Tororo announced, "Requesting permission to send the second squad for backup?"

"Request denied," Garuru stated in a calm manner, "have the agents corner him in the southernmost block, the road leading to the Pekoponian highway starts there and it'll make cornering him easier with no place to run. If my guess is correct he may be provided with a flying mechanism so the loss of his vessel would not be an issue for him." Garuru replied and then hit more buttons on the keyboard, glanced at Giroro and then gave a small smile, "Feel up to a game of tag, brother?" he asked as he made a loud noise of slamming his finger on a button.

A large device of levitation wings was phased besides Giroro, accompanied with a pair of odd and thick jade colored gloves and vest, and the red invader turned to the collection of wears in surprise at first, before picking it up and turning his questioning gaze to his older brother.

"This target needs to be caught unharmed; according to our records you two used to be in the same class, so your presence should be familiar enough to throw him off long enough to let his guard down." The lieutenant explained. "Please note that Chief Medic Shupepe is skilled in close quarter combat so it is better to try and subdue him through physical means." The expression darkened a little, becoming more serious, "And Giroro? Do _Not_ let him Hit you." Was the warning he provided.

Giroro, feeling the seriousness of that warning was compelled to do as told without complaint. He nodded once and put on the vest all nice, snug and tight, strapped on the back-device, hopped out of his bunker seat and while he put on the gloves he marched towards the ship beaming array. Once the gloves were on tight and firm he knocked his ankles together and then with a salute, confirmed he was ready to be deployed.

Tororo typed a command and a companion disk levitated from somewhere above the Corporal to hover above his head, it beeped and the little red light flickered for a few seconds to register the commands. Seconds later Tororo hit enter, opening the hatch below the Corporal and dropping him down into the open field.

Corporal Giroro braced himself during the fall to sprout his wings and take in the wind drag, before balancing his mass to provide a better speed. Once the balance had been achieved he darted off towards his destination to locate their target.

Seeing that no weapons were required he took a mental note of how the gloves were rather thick, prepared for heavy duty. It was clear they were created for the purpose of close quarter combat as they would serve well to absorb hits and prevent body harm from being inflected, but could Shupepe really be that good that his brother would feel the need to warn him beforehand? He did not know and decided to think about it later.

His companion disk had locked onto the target and provided him with the distance, coordinates and estimated time of arrival.

The Garuru platoon's ship levitated high above the shopping center for a moment longer after Giroro had been deployed, and then it began to tail after the Corporal at a lower speed. Garuru switched the many camera feeds to focus one on his brother and another at the blocks they needed to keep an eye on. Locating their target the purple lieutenant watched as Shupepe had used a large metal pole he had probably picked up from somewhere to disarm and fight three of the assassins who were trying to corner him.

Deflecting their moves the pale blue Keronian being chased wasted no time to use the metal beam like a Bo staff and attempt to scatter the three attackers, forcing them to open their weak points for him. Garuru watched with a subtle twitch of a brow when Shupepe darted past one of the assassins with only his open palms and with pointy fingertips, jabbed them in certain points along the length of their arms and sides in rapid and quick succession, thus sending the assaulting team in a twitchy heap on the solid floor seconds later.

A hint of a fanged grin shown on the purple one's lips; the report claiming Chief Medic Shupepe to excel in acupuncture and energy-channeling therapy was indeed useful, too bad those assassins let their guard down and were so soon taken out of the game. He had hoped they would at least manage to subdue this young man without having to use physical means, or stall him from running off until his little brother got there.

Alas, now that the assassins were taken out and the backup team still on standby, now it was a matter of whether or not Giroro would be able to overcome this issue in hindsight or not. He had given Giroro a warning but did not elaborate, Giroro trusted him well enough not to ask and had accepted to jump into the fry, never doubting him for a second. Whether or not Giroro understood his warning and what he meant was still open for debate, Garuru needed to make sure this little mission would prepare his sibling for what they were going to go up against later on.

However this scenario was going to play, Lieutenant Garuru thought that, indeed, the mission they were going to undertake later on will be very interesting regardless.

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Ten minutes previously and no more than a few blocks away, two certain Keronians lost their Pekoponian suits…

Keroro stopped for a breather, hunkered up with his hands on his knees and a long wheezing sound escaping his throat, he looked a little paler than usual as he collapsed to hit the floor with a squishy thump, his butt perked up and face planted against the solid, cement floor.

Tamama on the other hand, collapsed on the ground next to the green Sergeant, flat on his seat before toppling back to lie on his back, panting and wheezing for air as well. "We could have died!" he whined, turning his attention to the green leader, his eyes wide and somewhat cracked due to the tension that bubbled within, "What was that all about, anyway? It all happened so fast…" he continued, taking a moment to wipe the sweat from his brow.

"I have… no idea…" Keroro gasped and pushed to his hands and knees, wanting to save whatever dignity he had left.

One minute they were running for their vehicles in order to catch up to Kururu before he got too far away, and the next the security were running their way and blocking them from getting through and making a ruckus, refusing to let them get past the wall of peacekeepers until they have dismounted from their suits. Encountering the law enforcers caused a bit of a riot even after they had done as ordered. Kogoro tried to explain to them it was important they got through, but the security personnel were advanced A.I. and thus did not compute what the space detective was trying to tell them, not with his choice of words and the flashy poses he kept doing, either.

It was a moment like that Keroro wished he had invited Lavie to accompany them on this particular mission, at least she could stay with her brother to translate while they tried to sneak their way around or something, but with the security so close knit it was not an option. .

That is when this one figure who Keroro found familiar was walking their way towards them. The figure was short and stout and wore a large fluttering trench coat, ashen gray and bright against the crisp sunlight. The figure also wore small glasses on the bridge of his nose, and had his hands shoved into his pockets.

Keroro was pretty sure he had seen the face before but could not link it to a name. Squinting for a better look, he saw that this person was an adult male Keronian, pale blue skin with headphones much like Kururu but greeted them with a more friendly expression. This new arrival looked at the Sergeant with a placid look in his cool, steady pace, a second passed before he brandished an amused smile and advanced a little faster, approaching them and the security who were making a fuss amidst the parking lot.

From what Keroro gathered the guy's ship was being confiscated and he was arguing with the machine in charge that he had done nothing wrong, and yet even while he complained to the security that they must have made a mistake the Sergeant could not help but note the guy did not look at all bothered, he was too relaxed, too calm, almost as if he had the whole situation under control. Just as the argument became more heated, Keroro having already forgotten their objective of following after Kururu, that is when the security attempted to grab at the Keronian's arm, but the blue one did not give them much of a chance to even blink.

The familiar looking stranger pulled both hands from his pockets and then threw something onto the ground. It exploded with a large gust of hissing, billowing gas and a thick cloud of smoke, veiling everything from view and blinding them for a few precious seconds. The green invader could have sworn he felt something swoosh past his head, something with the sound akin to a blade being drawn, but by the time the smoke had cleared the security members were missing a few people.

Or rather, some of the A.I. had been knocked down into a heap of arms and legs on the floor, twitching and sparking where they had received a solid blow. A second later Tamama who had been latching onto his leader's arm let go to point away, crying how the stranger had headed to a different direction. It was to no surprise Kogoro had run at that direction as well, crying for the offender to stay his ground and admit to his crimes, leaving rather unenthusiastic green and dark colored Keronians behind.

The remaining security hurried towards that direction and after the loud detective. A second later Tamama grabbed his Sergeant by the arm to run towards the opposite direction. Keroro was confused for only a minute when he realized the Second Class Private had lied and the offender was in the very edge of their perpetual vision.

As odd as the fates chose for the events to play, Keroro and Tamama managed to tail behind the offender, and Tamama called out for him to stop and hold his ground, but the pale blue one turned his head the slightest bit in a motion of hearing the tadpole, and then choosing to ignore him. Tamama huffed and focused on adding more speed to his run, ignoring how Keroro was having a bit of trouble keeping up to the dark one's pace to the point of tripping and getting his rump scrapped against the hot asphalt below.

Tamama, oblivious to the abuse, continued to drag his leader's pain-struck body along, never slowing for even a second.

It was not until there were no more than five to seven feet between them that seconds later shadow agents, or assassins however name you prefer, had appeared to corner the three and not giving them an inch to flee through. Keroro was very confused and terrified, not to mention a little battered, dry and breathless, why were there so many Keronian assassins surrounding them and why were they tangled in this mess?

Before anyone could say a word, three assassins had ignored the confused duo and leaped at the pale blue stranger.

The coat-wearing Keronian phased a metal pole out of thin air and without missing a beat, he and the assassins began a wild dance of sorts, listening to the rhythm of a song that only they knew. The Sergeant and his right hand tadpole had no idea what was going on, and spent most of their time dodging projectiles of flying stars and daggers as well as a metal pole from hitting them in the face. It was only another smoke bomb later that the shadows scattered and the two were left to scramble to safety under the shade of a massive parked vessel.

Keroro felt the heartbeats hammer in his chest for what felt like ages afterwards, and so after he felt he had calmed down well enough to keep his thoughts in order, the green one got to his feet to peer past the vessel they had used as a shield. He could no longer see the shadow agents nor the one they were chasing, but he could still hear the sound of metal to metal which meant the battle was still raging on not too far away from where they were.

That is when he sensed a familiar presence approaching, a tingle prickled the skin at the back of his scalp, and before he could turn around the swooping shadow of something high above their heads zipped by. Keroro's wide eyes turned to look at the figure above, he was surprised to recognize it in an instant as Corporal Giroro's frame.

"Giroro!" he said aloud, more to himself than to anyone else.

Tamama turned to look at his leader in confusion for a second, and then pushed to his feet to look past the vessel towards the fight that continued to rage on.

Indeed, in seconds Corporal Giroro made a touchdown to solid ground and hit it running while his wings withdrew into the back device, the companion disk floating above his head soared higher, now keeping its position in the central top position of the block area they occupied.

The pale blue Keronian wasted no time making a swing at him… and then staggered and pulled back his blow when a shocked look washed across his features. "Giroro!" the blue one cried the name, shocked to see the red face barreling towards him, but the hot-blooded soldier did not give his target much of a chance to dodge as a thick, gloved fist met the blue one in the abdomen, knocking the wind out of him and aiming to dispatch him from the battle as swiftly as possible.

"I'm sorry, but it's time for you to take a nap," the red one rumbled, keeping his hold on the trembling form before him, if only to prevent him from hitting the floor.

Seconds ticked by and the shadow agents seemed to let their guard down since their target had been crippled, but then Giroro made a grunt and staggered backwards with a strangled noise. Next Shupepe had shoved him back with a broad grin and chuckle, as well as a smothered glower of suppressed anger. Giroro collapsed to one knee and had a hand on his own middle, hinting that the pale one had probably stabbed him there or inflected damage of some sort.

The two seemed to share a hushed argument that the green one could not pick up due to how far apart they were. Sergeant Keroro wasted no time sneaking from behind one parked vessel to the next in order to get closer, wanting to hear what the fuss was all about.

Tamama followed right behind him, however he had then diverted his attention from the strange mob before them to the large shadow hovering right on top of their heads. Keroro did not seen to notice the looming shadow at all, too focused on putting all his focus on the conversation a fair few feet away.

The tadpole's action of turning his chin up to look at the sky was slow and reluctant; as if he knew whatever was above them was something he did not want to see.

And he was right; Garuru's platoon ship hovered above them before the beaming array appeared once more and the purple lieutenant descended in a slow, graceful manner. The yellow visor covered eyes of the purple one were fixated to the sneaky pair, and Tamama felt his heart plummet into the put of his stomach when he realized what kind of trouble they had somehow managed to get themselves into. Upon touching the earth the lieutenant sent the two peeping Keronians a mild look, remained still for a second longer and then began to walk towards them.

Whereas Keroro had no clue what had transpired behind him, Tamama had started sweating buckets.

Anxious, the Second Class Private patted his leader's shoulder when Garuru advanced towards him.

Keroro being too occupied with trying to eavesdrop on Giroro's conversation batted Tamama's hand away, telling him not to interrupt him while he's working, and then at Tamama's constant bothering he was about to turn and ask the younger one to hush, but then the dark youth grabbed his leader by the head and twisted his neck around towards the approaching danger hard and fast to enough to snap it; fortunately the leader was well corded and he didn't unintentionally get his head screwed off, it served to give the green one sever neck pain instead.

Garuru stared at the scene, having flinched despite himself at the neck twist, then heaved a mental sigh of relief when Sergeant Keroro seemed to still be alive and kicking.

His brother did keep the oddest bunch… no wonder Chief Medic Pururu complained that Giroro's blood pressure issues kept getting worse.

"All right! All right, I get it; no more horsing around…" Shupepe's voice spoke aloud, displeased yet defeated and with his hands up in surrender.

Giroro got to his feet, his hand still to his side he was about to say something when the ground below their feet shock and trembled once more. Confused stares were looking everywhere, wondering what had caused the ground to shake.

Much to a certain crew's dismay, the familiar laughter of 'Haaaaaah Ha Ha Ha Ha!' returned as Space Detective Kogoro was still running at full speed, only now he was littered with dirt, grass blades, dead leaves and trash that may have belonged to a trash bin or two somewhere beyond their realization. Just as Kogoro was running their way he had the few remaining A.I. still chasing after him, along with a slow of angry customers as well, and he tripped on pretty much nothing at all.

Hitting the floor the trash and dirt were sent flying…

Much to Tamama's horror a banana peel happened to be the one thing landing square-dub in the middle between them and the crew alongside Giroro.

Keroro's toes twitched, and the Sergeant who had once flopped on his rear to the ground jolted up, his face blank as if in a trance.

Giroro did not get more than a few seconds to register what had happened.

First Kogoro had appeared out of nowhere with a shambled mess of security personal chasing after him, he fell down flat on his face throwing garbage all over the ground, then the next thing he knew Keroro appeared out of nowhere as well and was running like there was no tomorrow. Keroro slipped right on a banana peal that the red invader had no clue where it had come from, and before he could get the hell out of dodge, Keroro's flung body had hit the floor in a tumbling roll and slammed right into him!

Like a dodge-ball to the face, Giroro saw nothing but darkness and stars sparkling across his general vision.

The world was spinning with the dazzling colors of a kaleidoscope for the Corporal.

When Space Detective Kogoro got back to his feet the banana peel had fallen to the ground again and the space detective failed to notice it, he had stepped on it as well and in his attempt to get to Keroro, he had flung himself into a spinning trip as well and was sent rolling right into the ball of green and red. The three were then somehow stuck in metaphorical snowball as they were rolled down and across the parking lot faster and harder than they could control.

Tamama could not bear to watch and covered his eyes as the three hit the nearest wall and were sent flying up and scattered. Keroro crash-landed into the dirt and bouncing off to plunk his face into the nearest trash bin, Kogoro hit a street lamp that took his form with its bent metal, while Giroro landed right into the fountains just past the parking lot.

Garuru stared, Tamama palmed his face in dejection, while the shadow agents as well as Shupepe stood there staring with sweat of awkwardness forming on their skin…

They all shared one thought: _What the Hell just Happened!_


	4. Castles and Thrones

**. o 0 Chapter Four 0 o .**

It had been two hours since the incident at the Space Parking Area.

The Garuru platoon's ship had collected the wayward members, including Kogoro, and had taken responsibility to make amends and fix the damage that had taken place at the shopping center because of Keroro and Kogoro's antics. The Detective had then been taken home to his sister where it was better for the rest of the alien race to be safe.

In the main bridge Giroro was fuming, arms crossed over his chest where he had returned to Taruru's seat, Keroro had claimed Pururu's seat with Tamama who found a comfy perch next to him, while Shupepe was confined into Zoruru's remaining seat.

"I still can't believe you fell for the banana peel again, how many times are you going to let it happen before some actual body harm befalls you?" Giroro lectured, too irate and angry at his green childhood friend to address him in any other manner.

"Oh relax, Giroro, you know it's my funny bone at work. I can't help it!" Keroro replied in a far too mellow voice, earning a more agitated sneer from his red companion.

"Keep that up and you're going to burst a blood vessel, Giroro." Shupepe commented from his seat just past Tororo, who had been quiet and kept to himself the whole time.

"Shut up! You try talking reason with the idiot with the gray matter for a brain and lets see how long you'd last!" the red one snarled.

"You do realize you're tossing that at Kururu's _brother_, right?" Keroro muttered under his breath, and then returned to fiddling with the keyboard because he was bored, not because he knew what he was doing, "Honestly, I thought Kururu had a girlfriend; why didn't he ever tell me he had siblings? I'm his leader and I should know these things beforehand! I can't believe he didn't tell me any of this, I feel so cheated… I thought we were friends! How could he do something like this to me! That fool…" he mumbled in complaint. In truth, Keroro was more disappointed at that revelation even if he did not really understand why.

Giroro snarled with a hot fluster, propping up a foot on the edge of his seat and pulling back an arm in a gesture of rolling up his non-existent sleeves, looking like he was just about ready to pounce at the green one to deliver a thorough beating.

The red Corporal had taken off his back device but kept the vest and gloves on. Shupepe had disabled him with a kidney-shot and had locked one of his energy gates, which caused him weak knees and a bit of unsteadiness, which added to his inability to dodge Keroro's tumble the hours before, disregarding the fact that he was thrown into a daze as well. Now that the pale blue Keronian had been subdued and added to their forced the gate had been reopened once more, and the angry invader had returned to his normal livid self with a full flare.

That is when a subtle chuckle escaped the purple one's lips, and the red and green ones turned to him in a confused flinch.

"Although one would question your dynamics at first, I can see how well you two work together, Giroro." The lieutenant mused with a fist to his cheek while he was leaned forward against his control panel. "Also, need I remind you that we are here in order to relocate our missing agent?" As soon as the pair in mention settled down, the purple invader leaned back against his seat and crossed his arms over his chest in a contemplative manner, "Sergeant Major Kururu and Recruit Rinono are still missing, and since our guest here does not seem to know of their whereabouts either," he turned his gaze to the blue Keronian who refused to meet his gaze, "it is possible that he may have sought refuge elsewhere."

"Knowing Kururu he could be pretty much anywhere; he has more hideouts scattered around town than Keroro has Gundam figures." Giroro muttered, shooting his leader an irate stare.

"It would be so much easier if the current Chief Medic would just cooperate," Tororo grumbled, choosing to speak at last after a long period of silence.

"Although I have no interest in cooperating with the lot of you," Shupepe grinned, far more pleased with the situation than he should be. "I do need to inform you that though I may be Kururu's brother, even I can't help you find him if he doesn't want to be found; trust me, years of experience taught me that the hard way." The medic rolled his eyes, a bit annoyed. "Plus, Rinono had always been the one dedicated to family and demanding enough to always make him keep in touch, so she's more likely to have an idea to where he'd run off to than I would." He confessed.

"I've spent too much time away during my scholar years, so I'm afraid Kururu and I aren't really all that close," he added, a bit guilty, "Sometimes I feel like I don't even know him; I have no idea what he's thinking most of the time…"

Lieutenant Garuru was silent for a few seconds, and then straightened up in a slow motion as he was just about to speak his mind, but when the green Sergeant decided to exclaim his thoughts regarding the situation first.

"Well that's a lot of help," Keroro's sarcasm though mild was also with a scathing undertone, "I'm the closest to Kururu within the platoon and I don't have a clue to where he could be," he muttered, and then grinned at his red childhood friend, "Or we can have Giroro lure him out? I'm sure Kururu might be able to sniff you out if we provide a proper disguise? How does impersonating a giant plate of curry sound, Giroro?" he grinned, cheeky, and a hint under that mischievous tone.

And from there the argument arose anew between the flustered and angry Corporal who had no intention of setting himself to be harassed by a yellow creep, and far too casual green Sergeant who enjoyed getting under his friend's skin a wee bit too much.

Garuru remained silent after that, while Tamama heaved a sigh of frustration; those two were at it again and the young dark tadpole had no intention to try and separate them, let them duke it out for all he'd care, Keroro had brought that upon himself, anyway. Besides, it didn't look like things were going to play in their favor unless things got physical between those two.

After fifteen minutes of constant yelling and bickering between the adults, the young salmon-red colored tadpole had had enough! They were loud and noisy and annoying and very, very distracting! The more he tried to tune them out the noisier they got, and the harder their yelling was drumming in his ears causing a throb to pound against his skull, and making his helmet feel like it was confining his head tighter and tighter in a very uncomfortable state.

They were driving him up the wall to the point that it started to physically _hurt!_

It was times like this he wished Chief Medic Pururu was available to threaten them with her syringe; maybe that would make them put a sock in it and settle down! Their constant arguing was giving him a horrible headache and it was making it very hard to hear himself think!

Without warning Tororo gave a loud, near ear pitching scream and started slamming his hands against the keyboard in a violent display of 'key smashing' his frustration into the device, effectively putting everyone else into a state of being shocked into silence at the little one's strong volume anger.

It was about twenty minutes later that Tororo's angry-to-tears fit had settled, the tadpole coiled around himself with his hands slipped under the helmet to cover his ears; he let a low whimper escape his lips since his head hurt so much. He was also aware his actions were embarrassing, and he was too torn between the shame and pain to decide what hurt more, his ears or his pride.

Garuru noted the contemplative frown of guilt on Giroro's expression, and then the more so affected and worried gaze on Shupepe's expression. Perhaps the medic felt bad about the others upsetting the child? The reports had claimed that the Chief Medic was also quite keen on reading expressions like an open book, so the other members of the vessel were also open to the blue one's deciphering gaze, including himself.

Another tidbit was that he and Recruit Rinono were quite protective of their young brother, Kururu, so perhaps that made them more likely to cater for the needs of those who were younger? Recruit Tororo was an excellent invader but lacked the maturity of the Sergeant Major, and though the Lieutenant knew Tororo and Kururu shared nothing alike in personality, who was to say the siblings did not relate to them on some different level?

After all, Garuru would admit to himself Tororo and sometimes Taruru reminded him of things he and Giroro used to share when they were younger; it came with the territory of being the older brother and the one responsible of taking care of those under his lease.

Shupepe reached out to place a gentle hand on Tororo's back, causing the tadpole to flinch a little but not move away, "Hey, it's all right, everything is going to be fine." He cooed and gave the trembling boy a tender rub between the shoulders, "Are you hurt somewhere?"

"My head hurts," Tororo whined and rubbed the tears from his eyes, trying to keep himself together. "…all that yelling… felt like… someone driving a crowbar into my skull," he added with a sniffle.

Things went a little awkward and silent after that, Tororo's soft heaving and sniffles calmed down and eventually everyone settled back into their seat. Tamama seemed to keep his mind on the other young member with a hint of uncertainty, though he said nothing it was clear that he may sympathize with Tororo. The Keroro platoon was indeed earsplitting and raucous at times, and being a child caught within the loud bickering of adults would tend to send someone into the uncomfortable zone outside their familiar comfort zone, perhaps even to the point of tears.

"That doesn't explain where Sergeant Major Kururu had run off to," Keroro muttered with a fist to his chin and a bored look to his face, he let a whistling sigh flee his lips and turned to the cranky red Corporal who was busy scripting something on his keyboard, "Oy, Giroro, if you were Kururu, where would you go?" he mumbled, not thinking much on the question.

"Probably somewhere you'd never find me; or rather the last place you'd look." The red one replied without hesitation, not thinking much on his answer either.

And then there was silence as the pin dropped for the pale blue Medic; Shupepe snorted with a low burst of suppressed laughter he could not contain.

When the group looked at the Medic in startled confusion, the pale blue Keronian turned to the red invader with a mirth-colored grin and a twinkle in his eyes, "My, Kururu was right, you _Do_ know him better than you realize." He praised and then leaned back against his seat, adjusted his glasses and grinned wider, "All right, I'll give you guys a hint. Kururu likes his silence in solitude, and it doesn't need to be in small closed spaces, or within a city, either. Can you guys think of a place that provides that?"

Garuru watched, not once moving from his position nor making an attempt to join the conversation, his gaze turned from the amused Medic to his bemused brother and his teammates. Giroro seemed to draw into himself a moment later as he stared into the blank screen of his cabin seat, unaware of his brother's stare fixated at the back of his head. Garuru was patient, fingers intertwined and elbows on the desk before him, he listened to the silence as if focusing every ounce of his conciseness to try and hear what Giroro was thinking.

Kururu tended to keep to himself in dark and enclosed spaces, his laboratory was spacious if one knew where to look, and the disco stage was loud in the general aspect of the location of it being in the Underground city. Those two places were possible that Giroro was more than aware of, but he doubted the missing team member would choose to hide there because he felt they were too obvious.

The last place they'd look; the one place they'd never find him… where would the Major go if it did not need to be within city limits?

Moments later Giroro bolted upright with a hint of realization. Only one place he could think of would provide the yellow demon with what he wanted regarding the surroundings and atmosphere, and yet not need to be within a city.

It might be a long shot and highly unlikely, but if his hunch was right then Kururu might actually be there?

They won't know until they got there and investigated the scene.

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Meanwhile, very far away at the very outskirts of the city, a pleasant gathering was taking place at Hinata Akina's residence.

The grandmother of the Hinata family looked up from her knitting as the young Keronian lady placed the tea kettle on the tabletop, then offering her the tea cup of freshly brewed green tea. She smiled to her guests with a mellow, pleased smile and accepted the cup, not yet taking a sip as she watched the young one pour her brother a drink, then pouring herself one as well. Kururu made no gesture to pick up the cup as he was busy dancing his fingers across the keyboard.

Always the efficient one, he knew better than to leave HQ without a machine to work with.

He made sure to lose the tracking bug long before landing within the Hinata's property as well, having detected it early and then sticking it to a crow during their flight, just so it would not leave traces of when or where they had noticed they were being tracked.

At the moment he was in the process of figuring out whom were the powers at play, and if he could get some information in order to process the situation better. Alas the security was pretty tight, he couldn't break the code before it re-triggered and self-lock all over again.

"Any luck?" Rinono asked after long silence, she had been watching her brother toil with the laptop on the floor for quite a while now.

Ever since they got to this humble little house Kururu had jabbed the cable into the nearest power socket and started working.

Rinono was a bit unsure because it didn't look like this type of building supported built-in electric providers, and became even more concerned when Akina arrived from whatever journey she had taken away from home. The pale orange Keronian was baffled that the old lady was not at all alarmed to see them in her house, moreover she was even more confused that the nice lady had no issues with Kururu making himself at home without asking her permission, either.

"No, and it's starting to piss me off, Ku ku," the yellow one muttered, pausing in his rapid scripting to flex and pop the kinks stiffening his fingers, "whoever reworked this system obviously went thought my old records if only for the sake of doubling the security, and it's working." He sneered in displeasure, "I can see bits and pieces and a whole mish-mash from some of my old projects, only they've been reworked and rewired into a more complicated loop, and any wrong move will be disastrous." He growled and shut the device closed, becoming too aggravated to focus.

Skeptical, Rinono inquired with an arched brow, "How disastrous?"

"As disastrous as 'blow up this side of the planet to Kingdome come,' disastrous, Kuu ku ku!" he chuckled, only the slightest bit amused.

"It doesn't help the distance doesn't be of assistance the connectivity any, either." he muttered, a bit more sour over the ordeal than he liked to admit, "The three second difference in the latency doesn't give me enough leeway to surpass the security A.I. before it reboots the password and changes the codes; by the time I get past the main lock the secondary ones changes and I'm booted back to square one." He reached out for the cup of tea and took a sip, needing a distraction from what bothered him and a moment to clear his mind.

"Fortune comes to those who wait," Akina advised in a patient tone, nursing the warm cup in her hands she smiled at the two guests with a motherly grin, "Take a moment to bathe in the sunlight and clear your minds with some fresh air, I'm sure something will come to you once you set aside the troubles veiling your view. Getting so riled up that you find yourself running circles around the rock will only make you more agitated, and will not serve you well on the long run."

"I think I could go for a sun bath; cant say I remember when was the last time I've had any, Ku ku," the Major replied and set about taking his jacket and gloves off.

Ever since they arrived at the Hinata's grandmother house located so far at the countryside, he had been too busy making sure no more bugs were attached to his bike, and to try and figure out what to do regarding the issue at hand. He needed a safe, secluded place to take a breather and figure out how to go about making the right choices with the less damage possible, some place safe and yet provided them with what they needed for at least a day or two.

It was also a good chance to introduce his sister to the matriarch of the Hinata family, which much to his pleasure, earned them a few treats as well as a large plate of curry.

Akina was more than happy to let them stay over for as long as they needed, glad to have some familiar and new company arrive out of the blue was something she enjoyed. Kururu had gobbled the curry in seconds, ignoring his sisters chiding to not be so sloppy and be more dignified about it, but it wasn't like his stomach cared. He was famished when the food was presented and had no qualms devouring it whole; he remembered he hadn't eaten anything throughout the day and used it as an excuse for his lack of table manners.

The vegetables the grandmother provided were the best; fresh and crisp and their flavor was delectable in the meals. Rinono was so delighted with the meal that she just had to ask for recipe hints as well as gardening tips for future use.

With his outfit off and his skin bare once more, Kururu stretched out his arms and legs, scratched his butt and then made his way to the open porch to find a comfy spot to sit. Behind him Hinata Akina asked his sister to fetch a sheet from a nearby drawer for a more comfortable rest while she prepared some cushions for sitting. Soon Kururu found himself flat on his back with his head resting on a cushion propped by his sister's lap, Rinono was helping the old lady with her knitting and shared a hushed conversation while he took a nap.

It was calm afternoon at the time, the sun was not as hot and scorching as neither noon nor cool like sunset, it was crisp and satisfying and gave their skin soothing tingles. It was rejuvenating to say the least and the Sergeant Major liked it very much.

Kururu didn't even remember how long it had been since the last time he felt so at peace. The serenity of his undisturbed slumber was like dream walking, enlightening and inspirational. He could feel, taste and sense everything, and the calm was so overwhelming he almost didn't know if he was even asleep or not anymore. Whenever a thought took form in his mind his imagination would morph it into a near physical state, and he would swear if he reached out for it he could touch it as if it were real.

From the imagery of various inventions, to a slew of random things floating around, and then to the passive-aggressive glower and grace of Giroro popping into his mind uninvited, Kururu twitched a smile in his lucid dreaming when the thought of how much he loved driving the Corporal mad amused him.

Almost like a pin drop, the flash of piercing navy blue eyes shone in his mind like the slice of a blade, and yet it was accompanied with the spectacle sensation of a sudden realization dropping the preverbal coin onto the floor, the ringing and rolling of the metal piece jingled into the minds eye.

And suddenly, like an epiphany, everything made sense.

Rinono jumped with a jot of surprise when Kururu who had been asleep seconds prior had pushed upright, as if electrocuted, and had bolted towards his laptop. Ignoring his sister's cry of confusion he picked it up and placed it on the table, flipped it open and the second the device came to life, the windows all popped up and into place, his fingers like the rapid shooting shower of bullets from the maw of a thunderous gun danced their way across the keyboard, the loud clicking and tapping growing more and more intense, demanding, loud and stubborn.

The pale orange female pushed to her feet to look over his shoulder and at the screen; she was not keen on programming but knew what little which was enough to understand the basics. Of course seeing her brother was a genius since the day he hatched, she was no where near his level or fast enough to comprehend what he was even doing. Tense, anxious and perhaps a tad bit worried, Rinono braced herself and tried to reason that Kururu knows what he's doing, there was no need for her to fret.

He has everything under control; there was no reason for her to be troubled.

While the siblings hovered over the computer device, Hinata Akina continued to sit by the porch and work on her knitting, enjoying the cool sunset breeze and the various colors in the sky, feeling that those two needed their solitude.

On occasion that polite blue Keronian with the aquamarine eyes, Dororo, would drop in for a visit with his chirpy friend Koyuki. Their visits were far between yet were always pleasant. She appreciated the sentiments of wanting to keep in touch with her, and though she was old and wise enough to know Kururu may not share the same mindset, she was all right with it.

It was nice to have company within the same house even if they did not interact, she rather found Rinono's presence familiar and welcomed as it reminded her of her own daughter. Akina could tell Rinono cared for her brother and yet tried not to smother him, if only because she knew he didn't like it when she did, and though she didn't know Kururu too well it was her mother instincts that told her he appreciated the unconditional love, even if he didn't react to the feelings.

While Kururu worked, Rinono noticed that there were three dots on the top corner of the screen he was writing the scrip into. When he started they were all red, then the one on top died down, about two minutes later the second light died as well and the first one lit blue, when the third light died the second one lit blue and the first one switched into green. It was only after all three lights had switched to green did Kururu pause to flex his fingers and give a low, sinister and evil chuckle.

He sounded so smug and full of himself, as if the whole world now lay in his grasp and was under his mercy, it served to take a load off her mind as well as make her nervous, shaking with excitement.

Oooh! What was he plotting now? Whatever it is, it ought to be good!

"… and take _this_ for being a pain in the ass!" Kururu said aloud as he hit the enter key, two seconds later the screen flickered and distorted before the three lights flickered and died. The screen blanked into black for only two more seconds before the mainframe screen of the Keron Army's page appeared, with a whole new slew of popup windows coming into view.

"Kururu! You did it!" Rinono cheered, her hands on his shoulders in a squeeze to both praise him and keep herself from jumping in excitement, "But how did you surpass the system? It gave you so much trouble just earlier," she inquired, curious to know how he had overcome the obstacle.

Giving a mental note of thanks to a certain red frog for inspiring the answer to his dilemma, Kururu puffed his chest in swelling pride, "Best way to get rid of a watch dog is to get them to chase their own tail, Ku ku!" he snickered with a mean smirk and then returned his attention to the device at hand.

It took his sister a moment to process his answer, "You sent a loop code?" she blinked; "But… wouldn't the system realize it was a loop code and ignore it?"

"Not just _any_ loop code, a hex-segment equation loop code!" he chuckled and paused once more to flex his fingers while the screen loaded some more results. "Now the stupid A.I. is going to try and process the code six times plus infinity and it won't realize it's a loop until it gets two sides to match, which will never happen, Ku ku!"

Rinono grinned wide and settled down next to him, seeing a name and password popup had appeared, "So now that you're in, how do you plan on accessing the info?"

"I think it is more an issue of figure out what the password is;" he said at first, becoming contemplative as he answered, "Since Koii is more a shadow agent than an acknowledged Admiral not many know of her feats. Heck, I bet no one even knows she's an Admiral for that matter; she'd always using someone else for a meat shield with these projects." he mumbled, yet could not help but resemble those actions to a certain green invader he could name.

Rambling more to himself than to his sibling he looked at his sister though he was pretty sure she would not be much of help, "You know her best, any idea what her passwords would be like?"

Rinono stared, first at him and then at the screen, her expression turned placid and neutral as she drew into her own mind. The pale orange female settled back with her legs tucked under her, she continued to look at the illuminated screen for what felt like forever… and then she perked. "Volatile blue?" she said, a stoic tone to her voice.

Kururu seemed a bit phased at her reply, but then typed in the password anyway. Much to his surprise he had logged into the account without being rejected. He looked at his sister in disbelief, and perhaps a hint of suspicion, "Rinono, how did you…?"

Before she could open her mouth to respond, the electricity in the entire house died with a deafening silence when the hum and whir went mute, killing any and all forms of power and electrical energy from the building, including Kururu's laptop, severing the connectivity to the mother computer millions of star-miles away.

If Kururu was not too befuddled he would have actually reacted, alas the stun of such a thing happening was too much a blow to his mind…

Hours and hours of hard work, toils and tumbles… _gone_…

Darkness engulfed the living room and Akina jolted in her spot by the porch in surprise. "Oh my, did the engine die?" she said aloud, confused at the sudden loss of energy. She put down her knitting kit and stood up, aiming to check the back of her house and make sure the source of electricity did not fuse out or some such. It would not serve her too well if it died at this time of day, complete sundown was only minutes away after all.

After Akina had left, Rinono did not need to look at her brother to feel the lashing aura of smoldering rage and spite, the heat alone was flaring out and around him like a thick blanket, to the point she could swear she could practically see him glowing in the glower of red and purple flames.

That is when another familiar sound occurred; the all too familiar and infuriating laughter of '_Puuu Pu pupu puu!_' echoed somewhere above the house.

Kururu snapped his attention to the voice of the one other being he wanted to sink his fingers into their gut and rip out their innards, if only to shove them back down their throat in a bloodbath.

This time he was taking no prisoners! The little bitch was going to get cut down to size the second he'd manage to get his hands on him!

Rinono scooted a few inches away just to avoid the possibility of getting hit with the laptop, which had seconds later been grasped in her little brother's angry mitts. Kururu had picked it up from the tabletop to twist himself around and fling the offending object with all his might. The machine was then sent flying with a whoosh of air across the room and past the porch. Kururu focused his ears to the sound of the crash, the collision of metal on stone if only to satisfy the bloodlust churning in his vines.

Or at least that was the noise he hoped to hear when he threw the device, what he received after the throw was something else, though.

Much to his surprise the machine had been stopped mid-air with a loud '_thwack!_' instead of a crash; it collided the flat side against Sergeant Keroro and smacking him square in the face, missing Tamama by a hair's breath as he dodged it the second he saw it flying his way.

Everyone stood still, no one dared to move as Keroro remained petrified with the collusion as well.

When Keroro teetered backwards a moment later and hit the ground with a dazed thud and wheeze, that was when the lights came to life once more and the flickered back on, blinding everyone for a few precious seconds. Kururu and Rinono narrowed their gaze with their arms over their heads to shield themselves from the blinding light, and then when their eyes adjusted they focused on the crew of Keronians who arrived one by one at the porch.

Rinono could only recognize her brother, Shupepe, looking sheepish; she had no idea who the others were.

But then her gaze turned to the soldier a short distance past the porch, decked in thick vest and gloves with a navy blue belt strapped over one shoulder and emblazoned across his chest, said soldier also had a visible scar running over one eye and from what she could tell the eye itself was not damaged. The red Keronian in mention muttered something under his breath and went about pulling the bruised green one off the ground.

That fiery shade of red, and those blue eyes against the setting sun glowing at the edge of the horizon ignited a hot-cold and odd feeling within the pit of her throat she had never felt before. When the red invader turned to look at her general direction, more so at her brother than herself probably, it still felt as if his gaze alone took her breath away. Rinono felt a hitch in her vocal cords she could not explain, and her mind blanked for what felt like eons.

When Hinata Akina returned a moment later, the greeting to her new arrived guests and awkwardness were hard to ignore.

Kururu got to his feet and remained standing besides her, and his motion was enough to pull her out of her dazed thoughts and back to reality.

For better or for worse, the silence that lingered afterwards was anything but comfortable.

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Navy blue eyes stared out the computer window broadcasting visual feed of the wide open galaxy beyond.

Stars and planets were scattered across the great open haven that stretched way beyond his perpetual vision, and yet there was only one nagging thought running circles around his skull and making it hard to divert his attention to anything else.

Corporal Giroro turned his gaze from the endless outer space and to the rag and gun held in his hands, and a part of him wondered if he really needed to pack up all his belongings and take them along during this mission. A foreboding feeling refused to leave him alone. From the moment he had started removing the stakes from the earth of the Hinata's backyard, and even after storing them in their proper holding place within Garuru's vessel, the red Keronian felt like he was leaving something very precious behind.

And somehow, the feeling was heavier than that of it being about Natsumi; sure she had argued that he needn't take his things along too, but he really didn't like going on long distance journey without them, they were his personal and professional possessions after all.

What good was he if he didn't have his supplied and arsenal gallery along? He was a mobile weapon for a reason, after all.

Nevertheless, whatever this feeling was it promised him something on the edge of the horizon, something he may or may not like.

After they had located Sergeant Major Kururu, Shupepe had been the first to try and pacify his brother after their arrival. Giroro would admit he had never seen Kururu so livid, even under the scowl it was clear the yellow demon wanted nothing more than a bloodbath and yet knew he was denied that need. Considering the only blood he wanted to spill belonged to a cheeky salmon-red tadpole, lieutenant Garuru as well as Recruit Rinono had taken their turn to urge him to seize and give in.

Hinata Akina was perplexed to what the hubbub was all about, and Giroro apologized profusely for the trouble they had caused her as well as for their rude arrival, and then asked that she withholds contacting Natsumi because he planned to do that himself as soon as they got home.

Sergeant Keroro was aggravated at being clobbered by a laptop, and yet Giroro was quick to silence him with a solid smack on the head, while Tamama grumbled how this whole day had been a waste of time and effort for him; he wanted nothing more than to go home and stuff his face with sweets for the rest of the day.

Of course, due to the time being sunset the vessel had arrived at the city and to the roof of the Hinata household, only to drop Tamama and Keroro into the angry clutches of Natsumi. Although Keroro had begged him not to, Giroro had no sympathy for his leader and literally stomped him down the beaming array's hatch to let him hit the asphalt face first, adding bruises to the bruises, regardless of the already bruised pride.

Giroro felt that was not enough a fitting punishment for the little green imp; let Natsumi drill some more sense into him while he was away.

Natsumi had peered up from where she stood at the doorway and for a second they held each others gaze. As the ship levitated higher and higher she said nothing, she just smiled then waved a hand in farewell and her gesture alone sent his spirit soaring, it was all he could ask for. Giroro thought to only offer a smile in return his hand had moved in a natural reaction to wave back, only to be gripped by a yellow mitt to prevent him from responding. Giroro never moved, though he did flinch, his gaze shifted to the yellow one besides him who seemed to come out of nowhere. Kururu never met his gaze and the swirly, reflective glasses looked down the open hatch at the redheaded girl.

When Giroro turned his slight crestfallen gaze to Natsumi, she was still waving, having not noticed Kururu's action.

Even after the hatch door had closed, Kururu kept his hand clasped over the red mitt, giving it a light squeeze before slipping away.

Kururu said nothing, he didn't even laugh, he just turned away and headed towards the free seats available across the bridge.

Giroro, however remained by the hatch a few seconds longer before he moved.

On one hand the Corporal was irate at the Sergeant Major, yet on another it did not take a genius to figure out why Kururu had done that.

If Giroro had responded in kind to Natsumi, it would have brought suspicion to the ones also on the ship. Though the red invader knew his brother did not harbor any ill-will to the Hinata family, who was to say he approved of this friendship at all? Plus, Tororo, Rinono and Shupepe were complete strangers, invaders who had neither comradeship nor understanding to the life on Pekopon and what it was like. Giroro could not be himself around them, not when it involved Natsumi; it was a delicate situation and he almost ruined it.

If Kururu had not caught him when he had things would have gone down a different path altogether.

Giroro was not sure if he should voice his gratitude to the yellow demon, Kururu had no reason to look out for him but had done so regardless. Kururu would also use it against him if he saw fit or if he needed to pressure the Corporal for some reason, and the hard-boiled soldier did not wish to lead himself down such an path.

It was best to just let things be and pretend that nothing happened.


	5. Step by Step

**. o 0 Chapter Five 0 o . **

It had been a good six hours since they had departed, leaving Pekopon behind was one thing and overcoming an attachment was another.

Giroro was rubbing his gun in a bit of an aggravated flurry, causing a slight squeaky sound to fill his ears as he droned, lost in his own world of thought.

Would Natsumi be all right without him there covering her back? Knowing Keroro, the slacker may or may not try to be serious in taking over the planet in the Corporal's absence, and in the same time he guessed the circumstances would also force Natsumi to double her effort as to not get caught off guard.

Then again Kururu was on this mission as well, so did she really need to be paranoid over this?

As if the fates chose to ask him the same question, a loud screech erupted from some place behind him.

Giroro heaved an irritated sigh and then grumbled, put down the gun and rag back into the crate, where he had stocked them all into a large traveling backpack a distance behind Garuru's perch, and then pushed to his feet to peer over his brother's shoulder and see what was going on.

The vessel was constructed to accommodate for the requirements and needs of five members, which consisted of a storage room for weapons, spare parts and rations, a restroom and a main bridge, nothing more and nothing less. The Garuru platoon's ship was designed for constant travel, and thus was lightweight and maneuverable in case of aerial battle, which also meant it was not a traveling house and lacked space for finer things, such as a kitchen and bedroom, as well as extra space for the extra people who might happen to be aboard.

Corporal Giroro had yet to switch out of his vest and gloves as well, far too comfortable with them on. They were snug in a way that made him feel quite at home for some unexplainable reason, he rather liked the way they hugged his body and was inclined to keep them on.

Upon gazing past his brother's shoulder and at the bridge, he found that Shupepe had remained seated in the assassin's seat and reading text over the screen, while Rinono had decided to take Taruru's seat if only to keep Kururu from chucking Tororo with stationary projectiles, therefore placing herself in the center of the crossfire. Rinono was in the process of giving the two masterminds an earful, and she sounded very angry about it to boot.

Where Tororo shrank back into his seat, Kururu had leaned back to prop his feet on the keyboard and started picking his nose with a pinkie, his other arm folded behind his head. It was quite clear the sister's livid temper lashed with a flare that served to do little to no affect on her wayward brother.

"What happened this time?" Giroro mumbled in curiosity.

His annoyance was swept away and turned into amusement at the sight of the female lecturing the two regarding their childish behavior, slapped Kururu's feet off the keyboard and almost sent the yellow one toppling backwards to hit his skull, and then continued her angry screeching and how she will pound some sense into him if he did not settle down and behave himself for the rest of the trip. Her voice was not loud, but the Corporal could distinguish the authoritative tone nonetheless.

It was clear this lady had years of experience in dealing with the yellow one.

The Corporal grinned with a slight chuckle when Kururu seemed to mumble something under his breath, that earned him an angry sneer from Rinono and a stifled chuckle from Tororo. Giroro mused to himself that even if she was the Major's older sibling she had some guts to stand up to Kururu, that was for sure.

He liked that in a lady; she had _guts_…

"Recruit Tororo miscalculated and threw the cup of ice cold water right onto Recruit Rinono's back," Garuru replied in a hushed tone some seconds later, "He may excel in computers and programming, but his aiming is terrible." He added, almost a chuckle.

Although any other Keronian would say the lieutenant sounded neutral, if not somewhat disinterested, Giroro alone gave a small fanged grin when acknowledging the undertone of amusement in his older brother's voice. "Those two sure like to fight dirty; such a bad waste of provisions, too." the Corporal chuckled and then straightened up, heaving his weight off his brother to stand upright and yet kept his hands folded in place.

With no free seats available Garuru had managed to work the transformable grid of the bridge to shape-shift some parts into flat grounds for him to use. Although an extra seat could not be provided Giroro had no issues sitting on the floorboard readied behind his brother. In fact, he rather preferred his current location; it kept him out of Kururu's sight and offered an eagle eye for trouble, in a sense. All he needed was enough space to stretch his legs and focus on tending to his arsenal.

After all, as soon as they reach the Grand Star the space issue would be resolved.

"Goodness, you'd think with your rank you'd mature by now, Kururu! You practically hadn't changed at all!" Rinono said aloud, her fists to her hip and a scowl to her features, "I swear, if I didn't know any better I'd say you're enjoying this!" he added, her tone laced with disbelief.

Much to her chagrin, the yellow one chuckled, "Oh I don't know, you always did hit like a girl, Ku ku,"

Rinono opened her mouth to rebuke, only to let her jaw hang open for a second and then snap it shut, she palmed her face and muttered something scathing under his breath, which earned her an amused chortle from her yellow brother. Flustered and with a twitching smile she sighed and shook her head, "I swear to Keron, if I didn't love you so much I'd beat the pulp out of you." She muttered, and yet it was evident she was not at all angry, just frustrated at his shenanigans.

Kururu flashed a massive, cheeky grin and then pushed back to his feet with another long, giddy chuckle. Neither of them said anything after that, the two focused on tidying up their workplace and then getting seated again. All the while Shupepe was busy reading and typing something on his keyboard and machine, not at all bothered by the two kin's bickering just a seat away from where he was. From the looks of it, he was pretty used to their bickering and was able to tune them out just fine.

Tororo, on the other hand, stared in puzzlement at how the fight had been deflated without someone getting injured. Girls were weird… and scary…

Giroro, guessing the show was over pushed away from his brother's chair and settled back to the floor with his knees crossed, he picked up the rag and a different weapon and continued his task of oiling and greasing his gallery.

Garuru glanced over his shoulder to his red brother for only a minute, before turning his attention to his own computer screen as well. The lieutenant had been reading up the mission overview and the information that came along with it, including their dormitory room, their general team status requirements, and what needed to be done before they're briefed for their mission. It looked like a health checkup was in order when they reached the Grand Star, meaning…

The purple Keronian was not too keen on how this mission was going to play out, because he had no information on whom the hands at play were in person.

He was well aware Admiral Koii was one of the more obscured links of the shadow agents; she was not an icon of power within the Keron Army, and yet ranked as Admiral she seemed to hold a certain grip on the ones above her with a certain, rather alarming, level of control. She pulled her strings from the background and used her own methods to ensure success within the boundaries of their rules, and yet he had only caught her name within the records of admirable invasions once or twice in a very brief mention, never once explaining what it was she had done to ensure victory.

As soon as they arrive on the Grand Star, once a briefing meeting had been confirmed, this will be the first time he had met a female Admiral face to face, as most of who he had encountered were either retied females, or males who were still on duty.

Suddenly there was a shrill squeak of surprise coming from Tororo.

"Kururu!" Rinono suddenly shot up a second later, bolting up in her seat with a cry of anger.

The yellow one laughed and raised his hands in surrender, "What! Why are you looking at me like that? I didn't do anything!" he exclaimed back at her, but it was clear he was lying through his teeth from the wayward laughter slipping through his very amused and wide grinning lips.

"Urgh, I swear, you chuck something at Tororo _one more time_ and I make sure you regret it!" she hissed, drawing closer and closer and the end of her wits.

"And why are you protecting him for? He's a big man, he can handle it," The yellow one shrugged.

Tororo made a garbled noise of disgust and set about removing the sticky pile and strings and moldy spaghetti from his shoulders and lap, "Damn it, old man! Where did you even _get_ this!"

"Ku ku, that's for me to know and for you to find out," came the cheeky answer.

Rinono snarled, "Honestly, Kururu, stop picking on the kid and look for someone your own size!" she argued, having had enough of his brother bullying the tadpole.

As if her words were a strike of heaven's thunder, Giroro gave a loud double sneeze, and then an awkward silence lingered over the crew for a few minutes afterwards.

Everyone save for Garuru, who moved a hand to palm his face in silent sign of dismay, turned to look at the general direction of the Corporal who had the rag stuffed to his face, now smears of grease were all over his face.

Giroro figured Rinono's words had flagged him for mayhem, now it was only a matter of whether or not Kururu was going to take up her suggestion or not.

And this trip had started off so well, too…

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Giroro did not mean to fall asleep, but the trip had been long, noisy and tedious with two brainy Keronians pulling pranks at one another.

At first Sergeant Major Kururu was just making throws at Recruit Tororo out of spite, and perhaps entertainment since neither of them had anything better to do than harass each other, and though Recruit Rinono was sitting smack-dub in the middle they both somehow managed to sneak a few jibs at one another before she took notice.

Chief Medic Shupepe and Lieutenant Garuru for odd reasons decided not to interfere with the odd display of sibling and rivalry collision. In fact, Lieutenant Garuru seemed quite entertained with the display, even if it was hard to tell from the lack of expression on his face. But Giroro knew better, those fangs on his brother would only show when he was entertained or amused. Also, Medic Shupepe was keen enough to realize the purple invader was finding his sister and brother's bickering rather funny, thus did nothing to stop it.

The Corporal wondered, was this display bringing back old memories of their own fights with one another, perhaps? Who knew…

Corporal Giroro had pulled out earmuffs meant for the artillery range practice field and put them on, surrounding himself in a world of near silence. All the shouting and arguing happening at the front of the bridge was almost unheard to his ears which served to help him focus on his task of organizing his gallery better.

When the silence grew heavy and he was drawn into his own thoughts, the red invader paused in what he was doing because he could no longer see straight, his eyes were getting bleary and his body was getting heavy, then he yawned in a manner that nearly dislodged his jaw. It was only after a gentle nudge from his brother, and a gesture of hands, did the Corporal nod once and pulled his sleeping bag from his belongings, laid it in the free space behind his brother's perch and curled in for a nap.

It would still take them a few more hours before they reached their destination, the Grand Star, so for the time being he needed to rest and rejuvenate for whatever they were recruited for.

There had only been one warp-jump during the hours of travel, and due to maintenance issues with a bit of extra weight aboard the ship, which mostly belonged to Giroro and his massive artillery, Tororo was instructed not to attempt another for the time being. Twelve hours into the flight from the moment they disembarked from Pekopon, Giroro had slept only three or four, and when he stirred and stretched some time afterwards realizing he had slept with the mufflers on, he took them off expecting to affront his ears with some mind numbing noise, only to find the bridge kind of quiet.

"I hope you had a restful sleep?" came Garuru's hushed greeting. He finished typing something on his keyboard and hit enter, and then rotated his seat around to look at his droopy brother. The lights within the vessel were dim, and the screen before his brother illuminated the space between them enough to tell the other's expression.

Giroro nodded once and rubbed an eye, he didn't need to say anything and looked at his brother with a quizzical frown.

Garuru, almost reading his sibling's thoughts smiled and nodded once, "Seeing you decided to take a nap, I encouraged the others to do so as well. We will not arrive at the Grand Star for another four or six hours, so it would serve us all best if they took time to rest, seeing we do not know whether or not we will be given a chance to do so once we arrive." He explained, leaning back and getting comfortable in his chair, "Right now Sergeant Major Kururu, Recruit Tororo and Medic Shupepe are sleeping," he turned to look at the soft snoring and sleep mumbling members within his ship, "Recruit Rinono is awake, however. She had gone into the back room to fetch something to eat. Are you hungry?"

Giroro shook his head and brushed the last of the sleep-dust from his eyes, "No, not really. I could go for some water, though." He rasped, voice thick with sleep.

"Then go freshen up, Recruit Rinono would have the water available there as well." His brother encouraged, perhaps sounding a bit too casual.

Giroro, amidst the fog of sleep, did not pay much attention to his brother's tone and agreed, he pushed out of his sleeping back and stretched, and scratching his arms he made his slow and wobbling way towards the small back room where their provisions and supplies were stocked. It was a little past that room that the restrooms were available, so the Corporal thought he could get cleaned up and fetch a drink along the way.

And Garuru had to hold back a fanged grin; if his guess was right things ought to become quite interesting for his little brother.

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Giroro did not process thoughts too well when he would wake up groggy and heavy, and for that he had trudged his way into the store room and past a surprised recruit who had something he did not quite catch, he just waved a dismissive hand at her and then made his way to the restroom, relieved himself, washed his hands and then freshened up, all the while wanting to rinse the sleep away. The red invader, even in his sleepy stupor, knew that though they were a fair few hours away from their destination of arrival, there was a niggling feeling in the back of his mind.

Once again he felt like he had forgotten something very important, something precious.

Allowing himself a moment to reminisce and hope it'll come to him, Giroro reached for his belt and without having to take it off clicked the front buckle open, revealing the item of his affection, and a reason why the leather strap would never leave his side.

He looked at the photograph of Natsumi, bewildered and confused at the camera that had taken her picture, then at the cat, Ms. Fluffbottom somewhere in the background peering at him with an expecting face. White fangs peeked from under the soldier's lips as the Keronian smiled, he didn't really get the chance to tell the cat farewell, did he? He will try and make it up to her somehow when he got back to Pekopon.

Stroking the side of the picture with his thumb, the memory of Kururu grabbing his hand made him frown; contemplative and thoughtful. Giroro decided a minute later that he did not need the distraction and flipped the photo, placing the image face down into the slot and clicking the buckle shut where it was being kept safe.

Here, on this mission, excluding Garuru and Kururu he was surrounded by strangers, and they needn't know his weakness nor did he wish to reveal this to anyone, especially not to his own brother. Giroro did not know if Garuru was aware of his affection to the Pekoponian girl, and thought that he really didn't want to know.

Would Garuru think any less of him if he found that Giroro was in love with the enemy?

As an invader it would be considered treason to have sentimental attachments to a Pekoponian. Giroro found, for some bizarre reason, that he did not feel alarmed nor worried if someone caught him looking at the picture, or if Kururu decided to call him out on it for any number of reasons, even if he knew he very much should feel the slightest bit of paranoia.

What would he say if he was caught and they asked him about it?

'_It is something I keep to remember the face of an admirable foe, as well as Pekopon's last line of defense,_' he would answer, maybe. He thought that it would work as a decent enough answer, wouldn't it? Though it might place Natsumi's life in danger if the powers at work decided to take matters into their own hands, if only to hasten their activities on Pekopon and take over the planet already, but he'll worry about it when and if he got there.

When and if…

Corporal Giroro made sure the belt was strapped on nice and snug in place before he exit the restroom. He looked up at the sound of wrappings being crumbled and saw Recruit Rinono standing near the crate of rations, she looked like she was reading the description and contents of the noodle-cups, examining the ingredients, perhaps? A moment later she was aware of his return and turned to him with a sweet and perhaps shy smile.

"Ah, Corporal, I hope you slept well?" she asked, her action a bit jittered she placed the cup on a tray along with a kettle of hot water and chopsticks.

"Yes, though I'm a little drowsy," he replied, then gestured to the tray, "and also if that is for Garuru, then I may suggest you replace the chopsticks with a fork." he informed and left it at that, not wanting to give away his brothers dislike of chopsticks just yet.

Rinono was taken aback by that in the beginning, but after a thought she nodded and reached into another crate to pull out a pair of forks and spoons. That is when the Corporal noticed there were two noodle cups on the tray instead of one. Was the other cup prepared for her or for him? Somehow he wasn't sure if it was his place to ask…

"So," Rinono started, distracting him from his thoughts, "I've… been meaning to ask," she said again, and the Corporal noted she was not looking at him as she spoke, instead she was fiddling with the plastic corner of some sort of wrapping, "you have been working with my brother for a good few years, correct?" she looked up then, a nice smile graced her features.

"Yes, Sergeant Major Kururu and I have been working together for about four or five years now; why do you ask?" he arched a brow, curious.

"Well, then I guess it goes without saying; I apologize in advance for all the times he had burned you." She smiled, apologetic and sheepish, "He must have put your team through quite the hassle, no?"

Giroro stared as he was taken aback by her words, and then rolled his eyes while somehow managing an amused smile, "You don't know half of it," he muttered.

"I'm his sister, trust me, I know more than just half of it," she replied with his arms crossed, "still, I'd like to thank you for tolerating him for so long, I know how demanding he can be when he gets into his creative moods." she added, sounding more genuine and letting her feelings be known, "This had been the longest he had ever been a part of a platoon without being booted out or rejected, and considering his record, it must say a lot about your patience with him," then without a warning, she straightened up to bow her head real low, her earflaps flopped down with the motion, "thank you for taking care of my brother, you have my utmost gratitude."

Now it was Giroro's turn to get flustered, "Oy, stop that!" he waved his hands, wanting her to stand straight and yet not daring to reach out; this was making him feel a little nervous.

The pale orange Keronian straightened up with half lidded eyes and a small smile, after she heaved a small breath she looked at the warrior with what he could only describe as a thankful smile of gratitude. Rinono said nothing after that, the silence that lingered was somehow not awkward or uncomfortable, but it left the two at loss for words all the same. A few seconds later she turned her attention back to the tray and picked it up, giving the red Keronian a subtle smile and then making her way out and back to the bridge.

Giroro remained where he was for a few more minutes after that, unsure how to take her words.

Kururu had been assigned to a platoon then had been rejected? And what was this thing regarding records? This had been the second time they had been mentioning; Tororo had said something about digging things out from old records when he had first joined, so was there more to the records than the Corporal was being told?

The red Keronian was sure he had not been informed of anything relating to Kururu having records prior joining the platoon. From what he was certain of none of them had records prior forming the platoon, including Kururu; they were all supposedly fresh and new invaders and thus had nothing to place in a record to speak of.

Had the yellow one been withholding that piece of information? If so, then why? Wouldn't it have strengthened his rank if he admitted to having experience on the field before joining the platoon? Then again he thought that Kururu was cryptic at best, so perhaps this issue should be to no surprise for him. The yellow Keronian was a cheeky annoyance at best and a spiteful prankster at his worst, but it wouldn't go as far as being booted out of a team unless his shenanigans had been quite extreme, wouldn't it?

Was that why he had been selected to their team, or did Kururu ask to be placed in their platoon when they were being sorted into teams?

Giroro had to contemplate that for a moment longer; Kururu and Keroro had always been in tune whenever it was something involving the invasion. Whenever Keroro would ask for something Kururu would more often than not whip it out in record time without question, to the point that the Corporal would get the burn of their pranks backfiring most of the time, almost on a daily basis in fact.

So, if Kururu was an elite prankster wouldn't that say so much more regarding Keroro's pranks, making him seem mediocre at the very least? And if that was the case, did that imply that Kururu had yet to illustrate his full flare to the lot of them? Was Kururu behaving himself in the Keroro platoon, or were they truly too lenient with him?

Corporal Giroro guessed that in itself might be better stay a mystery.

If the yellow demon was behaving then Giroro would admit, he didn't want to know what Kururu was indeed capable of doing if he was pushed to the brink, and in the same time if they were being too lenient then what else could they do about it, anyway? They needed Kururu for their invasion plans, and it would be almost impossible to replace Kururu putting in consideration his caliber at what he does, it'd be like asking their invasion plans to flunk before they even get off the ground.

The Corporal would admit, if push came to shove he probably would not want Kururu replaced; he could not put words to those thoughts and thus could not explain it, but it was something he felt strongly about. Of course it wasn't as if he _liked_ the yellow creep or anything, but Kururu was indeed irreplaceable. Giroro guessed that on one hand it would explain why Kururu would only tackle him in bouts during their invasion attempts, sometimes targeting Keroro and sometimes targeting Natsumi or even Fuyuki when some experiment needed to be tested out, or a plan taken underway.

The Corporal would admit that though Kururu had been quite a pain in the butt he did not really harbor any ill-feelings towards him; heck, Giroro would admit that to a point he'd go as far as trusting his life to the yellow monster. Kururu had yet to give him a reason to doubt him or cause friction, or even contemplate treason; Kururu was a full fledged invader who earned his full support and had no qualms pulling the cards from his sleeve if it ensured success.

Though, would Giroro go as far as risking his life to ensure Kururu's safety? Kururu was his superior, so even if he didn't like him or hated him for that matter, it would be considered treason to let him get injured and not do anything about it. Ensuring the safety of his team was one of his rank's primary expectations. There was a time to attack and a time to defend, and that is what a mobile arsenal was for, to fulfill either or both requirements when they were needed the most.

But would those ploys go as far as turning his back to the team by hiding important bits of information? Giroro wasn't sure. Kururu had a habit of not explaining everything, or withholding bits and pieces of information regarding his experiments or what they were up against, but most of the time those things were minor and made no effect on their choices in hindsight, so the yellow Major did not do it out of ill-will, only out of reason that it made no difference at the time.

But how far would Kururu go to keep things a secret? How deep can the dark valley sink?

No, it was best not to think such thoughts; Kururu may not be exactly the first person to vouch for in honesty and decency, but that did nothing to discredit his worth as an able member of the Keron Army. In fact, Giroro found that an even stronger reason to fear him; if Kururu had a record before joining the platoon, as obscure and ominous as it sounded, the Corporal would think it would be best not to touch onto that topic at all.

Whatever Kururu had done before their meeting did not matter, and Giroro did not want to start having second thoughts due to things unburied from the past. So, unless Kururu himself felt like sharing, Giroro had no interest in digging those out.

With the need to throw away those undesired thoughts, the red Keronian brushed himself awake to toss away any hint of his previous discomfort, and then made way out of the storage room and back to the bridge.

He found Recruit Rinono working in Taruru's seat and typing something onto the device before her; she seemed to try and make as less noise as possible. Sergeant Major Kururu was stretching and yawning in his seat besides her, having just woken up he was trying to rouse himself into full awareness. Medic Shupepe had his arms folded behind his head, but Giroro could not tell if the blue one was awake or droopy.

Recruit Tororo was tucked with a blanket and was still sleeping, Rinono had paused in her work to shift the salmon-red child to lean into a more comfortable position, adjusted the blanket for more comfort, and then went about wiping the drool from the corner of his mouth with a tissue, sweeping the crumbs of some food that happened to be there as well.

Kururu muttered something to her with a mild scowl, but the red Corporal was too far to catch what the yellow one was saying, regardless it made his sister chuckle and then poke the yellow one on the forehead in response, then turned her attention back to the screen, mumbling something hushed in reply. Kururu grumbled something in response to that, and when the yellow one threw his legs over the side of the nest to make his way to the restroom, Giroro noted the Sergeant Major faltered for a second at seeing him standing where he was, before going about his needs as if nothing happened.

Giroro remained standing when Kururu passed by, he expected Kururu to say or do something and yet was not surprised when the other did nothing. Once the door behind him closed shut the red one moved and made his way back up to the upper deck and to his previous perch behind his brother's seat.

Lieutenant Garuru was working on something on his device, those nimble and purple fingers tapped their way over and across the keyboard in a certain rhythm and tempo, almost like a dance there was no lull between the typing and the noise was woven together in long, fluid streams.

The tray of provisions placed at the side of his work space. Giroro realized the two cups were for him and his brother, Rinono had not taken anything for herself for whatever reason. The red Keronian decided he was not interested in eating yet and proceeded to roll up his sleeping bag, tuck it back in place, and then go about sorting through his things.

Some minutes later Kururu returned looking rejuvenated and refreshed, with a steaming cup of noodles in one hand. The Sergeant Major got comfortable in his seat and cracked his knuckles, getting ready for the task ahead. Giroro was able to pick up the hushed whispers of how long Rinono was going to let Tororo sleep, and she expressed that she will wake the young one in a few more minutes. The younger recruit was droopy so she wanted him to be fully rested when they arrived at the Grand Star. Kururu grumbled how she wasn't his parent and should not be pampering the brat, but she shushed him and told him to go back to work.

The bridge had gone silent save for the soft humming from the various machines surrounding them, as well as the relentless keyboard abuse coming from Kururu, Garuru and Rinono soon afterwards. Giroro was quiet, sorting through the bullets and the gun magazines to keep tabs on his stocks, he found himself daydreaming a little while afterwards. Checking through his things he found a little alarm clock and according to the Pekoponian time settings they have only spent a good six hours worth of travel. Either that or the alarm clock was busted.

Then again space travel was different when it came to the measurements and calculating time. Giroro knew that the ten-plus hours they had spent on their journey had probably been nothing more than a few minutes to Keron, while it was worth a possible few days to Pekopon.

He wondered; if this mission took about week to complete from start to finish, would that mean Natsumi would be forced to deal with Keroro's shenanigans on her own for what could be anywhere between two weeks and a month? He sure hoped not; he never got the chance to get in touch with Dororo before he left or he would have asked his friend to keep an eye on the green rascal. Not that Dororo was going to adhere to Keroro's attempts to invade anyway, but still, it would serve to make Giroro feel better, though deep down inside he knew he shouldn't.

Also, he could not tell in exact since there was no way of communicating with Pekopon right now, they were much too far and the connectivity would not be possible for a multitude of reasons. Of course, the tiny and niggling thought in the back of his mind argued that Kururu might be able to establish a connection, Giroro knew better than to ask that yellow pest for anything. Just because he was willing to put his life on the line with the experiments, didn't mean he was willing to embarrass himself in front of his brother!

The last thing he'd want is to get humiliated in front of Garuru; if something like that happens he would not think he'd be able to live it down.

The thoughts that followed afterwards were tangent, morphed and turned to a slew of various topics that later went null.

After some time Giroro decided to grab a bite to eat and took the pack of noodle-cup rations, preferring to have them dry and crunchy rather than moist. Garuru made no comment on the loud crunching noises yet that still made Giroro a bit too self conscious, so he tried to eat as quietly as possible.

That is when a soft beeping sound came from Garuru's desk, who was having a flurry of motion with his fingertips dancing over the keyboard, in which he slowed his rhythm for a moment to free a hand and pull at a drawer and reveal a mobile device. Picking up the phone the lieutenant pressed a button or two to view who is calling, then received the call with a hushed hello. Some few words exchanged later the lieutenant gave a confirmation of approval before ending the call.

Next, Garuru turned to Giroro with a stoic look, "You might want to pack your things, Giroro; a second warp-jump is required." He explained.

Giroro nodded and hastened to gather his things, not wanting them to scatter with the gravity jump coming soon. Next, Garuru went about informing Recruit Rinono to wake the others to prepare them for the jump as well, while Sergeant Major Kururu prepared the ship for the jump. It took about ten minutes to rouse Medic Shupepe and Recruit Tororo, and the tadpole being groggy and lax grumbled that he was still sleepy and his neck was aching from sleeping, Kururu jibbed by telling him to be a man and deal with it.

Fifteen minutes after that they were all awake and prepared for the jump, after setting the calculations for the distance and time required, everyone buckled in and Kururu triggered the leap.

The jump itself was not a bad feeling, nonetheless Giroro knew of the disadvantages of a warp-leap when asleep or with things in disarray. It usually didn't cause any bodily harm though on occasion a sudden jump could cause mild discomfort, anywhere between tension in the muscles and to motion sickness. Like wind-drag the body would be pushed back by the gravity of the jump, and depending on the force of the leap it can either go unnoticed, to giving mild a sense of something pressing against ones face, to nearly being suffocated.

Giroro didn't even think much on the matter, sitting on the flat floor with his back pressed to his large backpack, some minutes passed before the jump began to slow and the shuttle has crossed the distance from one part of the galaxy to the other. When Kururu announced that the jump was complete and they were free to move, the Corporal pushed to his feet and leaned forwards against the backrest of his brother's chair, wanting to oversee the viewing screen in front of them.

Though groggy and cranky, Recruit Tororo worked on the keyboard in front of him for a moment before he spoke, voice hushed and rasped, still a little thick with sleep, "It looks like we might reach your destination ahead of time; the Grand Star had moved much farther than originally scheduled so we should be arriving in less than an hour." He said, then raised a fist to rub the last of the sleep dust from his eyes, and yawned.

"That's good, getting there early is better than being late." Shupepe commented and then turned to the captain, "Any plans after we get there?"

For that, Garuru decided to speak, "After we arrive at the Grand Star I ask that we all stay in group. There ought to be a team waiting for us upon landing, but since events had been accelerated ahead of time they may or may not be there." He replied, taking a moment to lean back against his seat, mindful of his brother there right behind him, and then crossed his arms over his chest as he continued to speak, "If no one is there and no plans are to take place upon arrival, then you may be dismissed to what you want."

"Of course, be mindful that just because we are ahead of time does not change our plans any. If any of you needs to be absent for any prolonged amount of time, all I ask is to be informed beforehand," He added, needing to drive a point home. "We have all been assigned a specific room on the west wing of the fifth floor, and for those of you unfamiliar allow me to express that is the Elite guard section." He announced, giving a pause to allow that piece of information to sink in, "I will not tolerate any foolhardy tomfoolery, as your current platoon leader I need to express that this is a very Top Secret mission, our presence on the other floors should not be noteworthy, understood?" he said in a more brisk tone.

If Giroro did not know any better, despite his brother not looking at anyone in specific, he had the feeling those words were meant for certain ears for sure. The red one turned to glance at the back of the yellow skull, not sure if Kururu was meant by that or not, still he could tell his team mate was perhaps aware of the indirect order as well.

Giroro felt tense. Something about the way Garuru expressed his thoughts struck a cord in the younger soldier and a slight shake of excitement tingled up his arms and down his knees. He gripped the back of the chair and leaned forward, just enough to speak in whispers to his brother without being heard.

"Garuru, is there anything I need to know about this mission?" he asked, expecting either a word of wisdom or utter silence.

What he received instead was something he was never prepared for.

"Don't die; stay alive, and never look back." were the lieutenant's hushed words. "If you as much get the feeling that something is wrong, or feel suspicious at anyone or anything then do not hesitate to tell me." He concluded.

And Giroro stared. He did not quite understand his brother's words nor did he doubt them, the look on that face and the tone of voice were more than enough.

Garuru was downright serious. This was by far a more subtle warning than the purple one wanted to express, that much Giroro was sure of.

And that spoke volumes about their mission altogether.


	6. Here I stand

**. o 0 Chapter Six 0 o . **

The travel though space and venturing into unknown planets had been part of the Keron Army's lifestyle for as long as the siblings could remember.

They were army brats in a sense, or most of them were; Tororo perhaps was the only one new to this lifestyle and yet seemed to be able to match them in step without trouble.

After arriving at the outer orbit of the Grand Star's league, the Garuru platoon's vessel was granted permission and access via communication tower, receiving clearance to land and announcing their arrival to the powers at work waiting for them. Lieutenant Garuru's shuttle landed on the docking bay and the double-steel doors shut behind them, while the belt that the ship had nestled onto moved the ship forwards, pulling it deeper into the bowels of the parking area where it could be pocketed into a fitting parking lot.

After the ship had been secured the members of the ship stepped out one by one, starting with the captain and ending with his brother, they made their way past the garage attendants who saluted them and into the main lobby. Before reaching the exit of the parking area an attendant requested permission to double-check and fine-tune the ship in the captain's absence. Although Tororo was displeased at the idea of having his baby meddled with, he knew the workers were just going to make sure it was in working order and would not mess with his things in there, so he let it be.

After they exit the lobby and made their way towards the grand hall, however, Giroro would admit that though he did not quite have too fond memories of the Grand Star, there was no denying that it was a spectacular accomplishment of architecture on its own. He had been on this mother-ship a good few years ago with the platoon when they had first been assigned as a team, and now he was back with only one teammate.

The Corporal wondered if he should be embarrassed at his lack of accomplishments since his departure, he really had no successful invasion tales to speak of.

If anyone asked him why they had not completed their takeover on Pekopon he'd really have nothing to say. For one thing he could never bring himself to badmouth Keroro no matter how much the green pea was a slacker, and yet he very well knew Keroro was a part of the problem, and so was he. He couldn't put the blame on anyone in particular either, not even Natsumi, not if he didn't want to bring harm to those he cared about.

That is when the fates decided they did not want the red and hard-boiled soldier to succumb to his negative thoughts, and threw a surprise at his general direction. Alas fate was also aware Giroro did not like surprises, but fortune was smiling because this particular surprise was meant to cheer him up instead of scare the wits out of him.

No more than a block past the docking bay the group arrived at the reception desk, and the purple Keronian took initiative to make a phone call and let their superiors know they have arrived ahead of schedule. Once the call was done and the captain received the keys for their dormitory, Tororo's attention was pulled elsewhere, and seconds later he made an excited cry and then started waving his hands over his head, calling out for a certain individual.

Garuru turned his attention from his team to the child, he directed his gaze to the subtle clanking sound of Lance Corporal Zoruru's arrival.

Giroro adjusted the straps of his backpack when the other two members of the Garuru platoon arrived as well, and feeling a little less out of place with more familiar faces surrounding him.

The lavender skinned nurse, Pururu, smiled wide and bright when she arrived just a few feet behind the half metal assassin, glad to see her captain as well as his brother, her childhood friend, return to the mother-ship safe and sound. Taruru greeted Tororo as well, though looked a little surprised at the gathering crowed. The three other members of the Garuru platoon saluted their captain, but before the lieutenant could speak Tororo decided he didn't care for formalities and grabbed the somewhat placid half-cyborg ninja by the arm to drag him, talking all the way how he was starving and demanded to go to the nearest pastry shop to stuff his face with something sweet.

Where Zoruru seemed a bit taken a back by the display he did not seem to mind being dragged off without their leader's consent, instead he hurried to match his step with the cranky whiz kid pulling him by the arm. When Lieutenant Garuru made no reaction to complain or prevent those two from leaving, then turned his attention to Pururu again to ask if the basic team preparations were complete, Giroro assumed his brother didn't mind.

Of course, Medic Shupepe would have told him otherwise, the hard-to-notice twitch on Garuru's upper lip and brows were enough to tell the pale blue one that the captain was not pleased with the youngest member of his team; it was clear Tororo had forgotten Garuru's instructions to stick together.

Ending the conversation with her leader, the lavender female turned her attention to the red skinned invader with a cheerful grin, "It's so good to see you doing well, Giroro," Pururu began, then turned her attention to the individual behind him and sounding a little surprised, "you as well, Sergeant Major, you were so quiet I didn't even notice you there." She admitted, looking a bit sheepish. "I hope your journey was comfortable? It's a long distance from Pekopon, after all." she reasoned.

A bit alarmed at that Giroro turned around to spot Kururu standing right behind him. The yellow one chuckled and waved a hand yet said nothing, choosing to remain silent. The Corporal felt awkward and out of place all over again, more so a sense of paranoia took over for a moment at the thought Kururu was tailing right behind him; what was the guy doing there, anyway? Wasn't he walking up front just a moment ago?

Receiving no answer, Pururu decided to switch her attention to the new faces, "Greetings, I'm Chief Medic Pururu, member of the Garuru platoon," she said and gave a subtle bow.

"And I'm First Class Private Taruru, nice to meet you!" the sky blue Keronian greeted as well, albeit with a more cheerful note to his voice.

The pale blue medic decided this was his spot and scooted closer top the beautiful young lady, took her hand and set himself down on one knee to give the back of her hand a light kiss, "And I am Chief Medic Shupepe, our share in rank tells me there is more to you than your attractive looks," he flirted with a widening smile, he chose to disregard her surprised and flustered reaction at his words, "I am honored to meet such a charming young maiden, please do let us relocate to someplace a little more comfortable, yes? You can tell me more about yoursee-eeoOW!" he screeched.

Rinono grabbed her brother's face by the cheek with a pinch and twist, and then yanked him away, "No flirting with the nurse, mister! Can't have you sleeping around with anything that moves! Need I remind you how it ended _Last_ time?" she growled.

"It was worth it!" Shupepe complained, though his sounded funny due to how his face was being pulled and stretched like rubber.

"That's what you say all the time! Don't expect me to come over and save your sorry ass all the time, damn it!" she scolded and then let go, letting his cheeks snap back into place with a loud smacking sound. Rinono muttered under her breath and then turned her sheepish grin to Pururu, who was sweating a little at the awkward display, "Oh don't mind him, he's a hopeless flirt." She chuckled, a little weary.

Taruru then chose to turn to the captain with clenched firsts and excitement sparkling in his eyes, "Sir! We were ordered to stay on standby in case we're needed, does that mean we're being included on the mission?" he asked, a hopeful twinkle in his eyes.

Garuru blinked, "I do not recall being told anything of that nature, so I can not say. I will need to discuss it with the one in charge before I can determine anything, Private." He answered, honest. Garuru remembered that he had been asked to acquire Giroro and Kururu's alliance in this mission, and that his team were given permission to return to Keron if they wanted to, but to arrive on the Grand Star to find them waiting on standby? He was never told anything of this, just what was going on here?

Although it served to dull the sparkle, Taruru was still a little excited, having not lost hope they may be allowed to join forces in this mission; from what little they're been told the young blue invader thought this mission was going to be a blast!

From there, Giroro lost track of the conversation when Kururu stood besides him, rather a bit too close. The Corporal did not move nor flinch yet could not help the feeling, Kururu was being a bit too cryptic with his silence and it was setting the paranoia in the red invader to maximum level. Navy blue eyes shifted to glance at the reflective glasses, and almost as if sensing the gaze the Sergeant Major tilted his chin to meet the glance. It was almost as if they were sharing a conversation of their own, but Giroro was not quite sure he knew what the other was trying to tell him. Kururu was as stoic and blank as ever, and yet the way those lips were downcast in a subtle scowl he knew Kururu was uncomfortable as well.

That is when Pururu and Rinono seemed to laugh in amusement, the two females were getting along just fine and sharing conversation about something the Corporal did not quite catch. Whatever it was, it was making the yellow one besides him more aggravated.

Garuru decided it was best to stop loitering in the main hall and head to their dormitory, and Taruru was more than happy to lead them on since he knew exactly where it was, considering that is where he and Zoruru were staying. That is when Pururu announced that she and Rinono were asked to recline in a separate room, much to Shupepe's disappointment, and oddly enough, Kururu's subtle glee. Disregarding her blue brother's attempt to let him tag along, Rinono shot him down with a glare and urged Pururu to lead the way.

Shupepe bemoaned the fate getting between himself and a lovely company who were walking further and further away from his reach. Giroro felt his brow twitch and Garuru did not understand why his upper lip was twitching, still the two siblings knew the pale blue one's lament was getting on their nerve. Nevertheless Taruru made another salute and requested permission to have the copy-keys in order to lead the crew to their dorm, which Garuru accepted.

During the escort Taruru kept talking, giving his report to the captain to get an up-to-date review of what he had missed.

After Garuru had left with Tororo to Pekopon he and the others remained on the second floor in order to pack their things and go home, but then a guard arrived to deliver a voice call message requesting that they remain on standby until further notice. The superior did not identify themselves, but the three were inclined to do as told regardless; all Taruru could say was the superior was ranked as Admiral but did not give out their name, and they sounded like an old lady.

After the message had been delivered Zoruru had went away without notice, and Pururu had been requested to go to a different floor due to needing her medical expertise, while Taruru spent most of his time in the dormitory trying to pass time alone, thus the three spent most of their time apart and had no clue what the others were doing. Taruru then continued to ramble how he was bored out of his mind with no one to talk to and nothing to do.

He had already finished all of his paperwork and job requirements so he was free to do anything, and yet had nothing to do. Seeing he had been asked to remain on standby he couldn't leave the Grand Star either, and there were no familiar faces to interact with which left him feeling more uneasy. After a hushed conversation with his captain, giving him a light encouraging pat on the shoulder, Garuru commended him for staying put and how it was forging him to becoming a better soldier, which served to make the blue youth smile with pride and glee.

Around that time Taruru went quiet for a moment and the red invader gave a mental sigh of relief; the blue one had been droning on for what felt like forever! It was about time he put a sock in it and shut up already. He must have had strong lungs to manage talking so long and so fast, too.

A few minutes later, Giroro was then asked if he needed a bot to help carry his luggage but the Corporal refused, not really trusting anything or anyone with his personal gear. Call it paranoia, but Garuru's warning before they docked stuck to his mind and made him feel a bit on edge at everything. Giroro would admit he was starting to feel a little fatigued due to all the weight he was carrying, still he just couldn't put down his things for even a second.

The journey from the main hall lobby to their floor took a while, and the red invader was doing his best to hold out until they got to their room.

Whenever they encountered a guard asking them of their purpose and identity, Garuru's replies were short, subtle and to the point, so when they crossed all security gates and were allowed into the dormitories section, Taruru was done reporting in and the purple leader crossed his arms in thought as they continued walking.

Shupepe still looked a little irate and displeased, not to mention annoyed of having to listen to the Private's endless rambling, yet was otherwise pretty quiet during the whole trek.

Kururu, though, seemed to try and match the Corporal's pace for some unexplainable reason, to the point that the yellow one reached out to grab onto the side belt-strap of the backpack, not enough to stagger Giroro back yet not enough to be noticed by the others, either.

In a way it aggravated the Corporal to have the Sergeant Major so eerie and silent, and yet knew better than to voice his questions for the time being; it was best to wait until they had some privacy to get some answers. Kururu was acting strange; it wasn't like him to be this silent. Even to him, he didn't need to see Kururu's actual eyes to know the yellow one was having an absentminded walk, Kururu was so lost in his own world of thought he had switched to automatic. Knowing him, he probably latched onto the strap only for the sake of not getting lost or separated.

Was something on his mind? If so, what could possible trigger his superior to shift into such a worrying mood?

As soon as they reached the dormitory though, Taruru led them in and Giroro wasted no time putting his giant backpack against the nearest wall to the bunk beds, plopped to his seat and then groaned, heaving labored breath. Kururu having still been holding to the strap gave a surprised '_Ku!_' as he was yanked down to sit as well, nearly hitting his head against the wall. Giroro made no reaction to that and remained in place, so Kururu gathered his somewhat bruised pride and sat in a more comfortable position as well.

They were sitting a bit too close to one another, but for some reason Giroro found the thought… not the least bit uncomfortable.

Garuru crossed the room to the central screen on the wall to punch a card into the slot where the companion visual Artificial Intelligence screen box was supposed to be present. Taruru walked over to the beds and plopped down on one of them, while Shupepe found a comfy spot next to the lockers at the opposite side of the room. The lieutenant pressed a few buttons before a beeping sound followed, it blipped a few times then went quiet, so he pulling out the card and the control box transformed into a much larger monster-master computer.

The purple Keronian turned to the Sergeant Major, "I have been granted access to the main computer, you may use this device during our stay here, Sergeant Major." He explained.

"Kind of tacky, but I guess beggars can't be choosers, Ku ku," the yellow one chuckled, yet made no move to get up from his spot just yet.

Garuru remained poised for a moment longer, "Well then, I'm afraid you'll also be sharing this machine with Recruit Tororo as well, so I hope you try to keep it in one piece, as tacky as it might look." He replied in a chill tone.

Lieutenant Garuru ignored the befuddled scowl on the yellow one's face and then walked past the group towards the door, "Now, I ask that you four remain in dorm until my return, I have a few errands to run and identification cards to prepare before our briefing." He announced and then paused at the door when it opened to turn to his crew, "Also, do not leave the dormitories lounge either, because you need identity cards before you can explore this floor undisturbed."

He pulled out a green card with the mark of the Keron Army on one side and his profile picture on the other side, there were three red lines next to two blue ones, and on the edge of the card outlining a long six-digit code number, "Your registered cards would look like this, green cards give you access to this level, the red and blue lines show your rank and the places you're allowed to go to. Note that this card only give you access to anything on this floor and the ones below, it does not grant permission to the upper levels. Understood?"

"Since we've arrived early the pass-cards may not be ready yet, I will need to go to the office personally to see if they're available." Garuru waited for a few seconds before he pocketed his card again and continued, "Unregistered members could get in trouble for going where they shouldn't, therefore stay put until we receive access permission, and perhaps a tour invite of the area if a guide is available." He said, and with that he was gone.

Silence lingered for a good whole minute, where everyone seemed neutral to the lieutenant's departure, Giroro could tell Kururu was not at all pleased at the arrangements.

Kururu was not just displeased, he wasn't even angry, he was simply… Downright _Livid!_

Contrary to the others in the room, Kururu had a pretty damn good idea why the security was so tight and they were being denied freedom; Admiral Koii was doing her damn best to keep him from going out and snooping around as usual, wasn't she? Well, that old hag will need to work harder if she thought for a second she could have power over his every action! That nag was already grating on his nerves. If she wanted to play this game with him already then he'll make sure to blast her ships right out of the water!

To add insult to injury, he was going to share the same computer with the little pink runt? Like hell he was going to let that happen! He was going to put the thing on lockdown and revoke access from the little pest altogether!

So without idling for another second, the yellow invader pushed off the floor and marched across the room to slam his hands to the keyboard. A comfortable seat phased into view and the Sergeant Major cracked his knuckles as he threw himself into the recliner, popped out his headphones and just like rapid-fire his fingertips danced their way over and across the keyboard.

Giroro watched as the script flooded the screen and a multitude of windows popped into view as well, he didn't quite get the time to follow up on what Kururu was scripting as it was going a bit too fast, but he knew the Sergeant Major was going into the process of surveying the device and its capabilities, probably to see how well he can use it and what its limitations were. When the yellow one started to slip a few sinister sounding chuckles though, the Corporal knew better than to approach the madman.

"So!" Taruru was the first to speak over the sound of the keyboard being abused my a megalomaniac, excited and curious to what their mission could be about, and maybe get to know who he was working with; new faces were always fun to get acquainted with. Not to mention that after their attempt to seize control of Pekopon Taruru thought that getting to team up with his captain's brother was going to be too awesome for words! "Anything interesting going on with you guys?" he asked, hoping for something interesting to happen.

Shupepe chose to be the first to speak, "Nothing on my end, I was just on my usual hospital inspection routine when I was called in for- whatever this might be about." He replied, paused for a second then continued, "Rinono, my sister, was in boot camp for basic survival training, I think she told me she was called in as soon as her two-week break started." He tilted his head to the side a bit and looked at the yellow one who seemed to ignore him, "Though to be honest, she's not exactly war-material so I'm not sure why she'd been included in this mission." He murmured. "For all we'd know the odds and ends might just be some bargaining chips tossed into the mix, don't you think, bro?"

Taruru may have missed it, but Giroro and Shupepe were more than keen in hearing to catch Kururu's agitated 'tch' of displeasure. The pale blue one hit a nerve and the Corporal was not sure how to feel about it. Just what was it with these siblings; they seemed to be a little uneasy around one another for some reason.

Or was he just being unintentionally-biased because he and Garuru get along just fine?

Giroro then leaned back against his large backpack and started stretching his arms, if only to knead out the ache of carrying the weight for so long, "Nothing much on my end either, we were still under preparations for another invasion plan, but it looks like it might either be put on hold or Keroro will have to do without us there to help him with it." He answered, then turned to Kururu, "Speaking of which, how far was that new weapon developed, Kururu?"

"About anywhere between sixty-six and sixty-nine percent, senior, like it always is when it's something made especially for you, Ku ku," the yellow one answered, grinning wide despite his gaze being locked onto the slew of ext filling the bright screen before him, never slowing down in his rapid scripting nor missing a beat from the conversation that had occurred behind him; Kururu was a multitasking genius at his best. "After all, my guns are always locked and loaded for you," he added, his snicker far more amused than what was normal, "all you need is to say the word and they'll be ready to solve any sticky situation you might be having, ku ku!"

When Shupepe gave a strangled snort of laughter, and then hit the ground with a garbled string of incoherent words mixed with suppressed chortles, Giroro watched as the pale blue one thumped his head to the floor and wrapped his arms over his stomach and started pounding a fist to the ground, having a riot of emotion and no way of keeping it suppressed, controlled or contained. The Corporal was very confused as the pale blue and yellow Keronians now shared a sense of humor that made no sense to the Private or himself.

What was so funny that it made Shupepe run out of air and wheeze for breath? The pale blue Keronian was turning a slight shade of purple, too.

"Ow! I think I pulled a muscle…" Shupepe whimpered amidst the laughter, tossing and turning on the floor, face a shade of flushed pink and suffocated purple, teary eyed and breathless his small glasses had already fallen off. It took the Medic a few minutes to calm down, slump on the cool and soothing floor, then stared at the ceiling for a good minute before turning to glance at the back of the seat his younger sibling still occupied.

Kururu never bothered turning around, those speedy hands continued to work on the keyboard at a slower and more controlled speed than before, nevertheless a few amused chortles of 'Ku ku ku!' slipped out every now and then yet the yellow one did not bother advancing the conversation further.

Seeing he was spared the onslaught of a killer laugh, Shupepe rolled onto his belly to look at the oblivious corporal and the awkward blue Private. It was clear to the pale blue one that the red Keronian had no clue what the joke was all about, whether he was that daft or if it were mere genuine lack of knowledge, Shupepe thought it would be best not to elaborate lest Kururu ends up strangled or something. After all, it was clear Corporal Giroro was not as… lewd as he and Kururu were, neither was Taruru from the look of their faces.

Oh the oblivious virgins were always the most fun to mess with!

Chief Medic Shupepe did not know much about Giroro, only that he was Lieutenant Garuru's younger brother, an independent, strong survivalist and the Keron Army's number One sharpshooter, and one of the main reasons his yellow brother had agreed to join the Army when he was nothing but a little child.

Kururu's comment, however, implied that the yellow invader may or may not know something far more interesting about the red soldier; the fact that the implication he may be harboring feelings for the Corporal were up to debate as well; somehow Shupepe was not at all bothered by the thought his brother would even swing that way, though Kururu seemed to like females for different reasons. Although from the level of that joke, asking for further details might be downright out of his league; he doubted Kururu would be willing to share any dirty secrets.

Giroro, on the other hand, could not help but feel the disconcerting tingles of an approaching doom drawing closer.

He could not tell how soon it was going to hit him, but whatever that joke was all about made him feel much too self-aware.

He repeated the response in his mind and he could not figure out what Kururu was talking about, or what made it funny to his sibling. As the gunman of the platoon nothing Kururu had said was out of the norm… or was Giroro either thinking too much, or going about it the wrong way? For all he'd know it might just be an inside joke with the Medic? He knew better than to ask the Sergeant Major, though. Giroro knew better than to ask for an explanation when he very well knew it was best not to know.

Taruru however stared at the three adults sharing the room with him and arched a confused brow.

He realized this mission, if he was to partake in it of course, was going to be either very interesting or very awkward, if not a toss of both.

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Elsewhere, Chief Medic Pururu was flipping through the pages of a yellow folder with a pen in the other hand.

Rinono was searching through the folder cabinet to pick out a selection of files, particularly the ones related to those taking part in the mission.

"So far everyone had a health check save for Tororo, Giroro and Sergeant Major Kururu, correct?" Pururu surmised from over the desk, and then wrote something on a notebook next to her. "As soon as the identification cards had been submitted they can leave the dormitory to access the infirmary, which I hope wouldn't take long. Captain had gone to the lower floor to pick up Tororo so it might take a bit before we can start anything." She said and closed the folder which belonged to the pale orange female sharing the small office with her.

"Kururu shouldn't give you much trouble, he's a bit health-obsessive sometimes." Rinono said and placed the selection of folders on the desk.

Pururu nodded once and then started picking thought he files, searching for the one that belonged to her childhood friend, "Yes, Sergeant Major Kururu tends to always come out healthy whenever I run an examination." She said at first, then a small frown seemed to form over her features, "Giroro, however… I swear, I'm surprised he hadn't given himself a stroke, a seizure, or a heart attack by now. If he pushes himself any further I'll be forced to put him on meds…" She mumbled, a little more to herself than to her companion.

Rinono sat down on the free chair and propped an elbow on the desk, she gave a contemplative frown at the nurse scribbling away on the notebook, "I cant help but notice you always address Kururu by rank and Giroro by name," she stated, her tiny frown turned into a teasing smile, "What's with that? Are you two dating or something?"

Pururu froze in what she was doing to stare up in shock at her company, then managed a flustered laugh, "Oh, no! It's nothing like that! Giroro and I are just childhood friends." She looked back at the notebook and started writing something, perhaps a bit slower than intended.

"Oh?" Rinono grinned, perhaps too amused by the reaction she received, "Must have gotten the wrong impression from the look on his face, then. He looked so happy to see you I could have sworn you were his girlfriend." She added, perhaps testing the waters.

"It's been a while since we've seen each other, I was just glad to see him doing so well." Pururu laughed, a little embarrassed at the notion, "Giroro and I have known each other ever since we were kids, trust me he's expressive and tends to wear his heart on his sleeve if he's really in an open mood; his face gets pretty animated at times." She explained, pausing for a minute in what she was writing to tap the end of her pen on the notebook, "And besides, he and I already have someone so it would be strange if he suddenly started having feeling for me, it would make things very awkward between us."

The pale orange one's expression became a little neutral, "Why is that? Doesn't childhood friendship usually grow into love during adulthood or even over time?"

"Well," Pururu paused to look at the profile image of Giroro within the front page of the folder, a little contemplative smile on her lips, "Giroro is aware that I… like his brother, lieutenant Garuru; when he found out he was actually enthralled with the idea, never apposed it." She pushed herself pack to lean against the backrest of the chair, "And besides, anyone would be able to tell you he has a crush on someone else, so it'd be pretty weird if he started having feelings for me out of nowhere." She said, then seemed to realize she had goofed up by slipping such information and placed a hand on her mouth, awkward and unsure how to take back what she had said.

"He has a crush?" Rinono stared, surprise colored her features, soon morphed into curiosity, "Who?"

Pururu raised her hands in surrender, "Sorry, I do not have the right to speak details," She explained, looking quite sheepish, "He'd also be pretty angry at me just for telling you this, so I'd like to ask that you don't ask him about it, please? It's a rather… sensitive subject for him." She reasoned.

Rinono propped both elbows on the tabletop and stared at the lavender female, "So I take it that means he's not available?" she pouted, disappointed.

Pururu jerked her head up to stare at the pale orange one, her eyes wide and her mouth agape, put down the pen and then stared, bewildered, at Rinono. Pururu had a thousand and one things to say to this bold young lady, and yet in the same time did not know if it was really her place to say.

"Well…it's… complicated." Pururu drawled, mulling over the choice of words in order to break the ice.

Stating that Giroro had a crush meant that the other person in the receiving end of the relationship did not know of the feelings, and in a sense it was true; if the other half did not know then Giroro was technically available, wasn't he?

Pururu was more than aware that Giroro had yet to confess to Natsumi; how could he? She was the enemy after all and though he really liked her, it wasn't like they were able to be together even if he did gather the nerve to tell her how he felt. The lavender female doubted that would ever happen; Giroro was much too bashful to say anything of the sort, even if he'd use the soldier visage as a mask to hide behind his true self.

Although she always thought Giroro's feelings for Hinata Natsumi were just so sweet and adorable, perhaps to the point of giving her a mental toothache, she also had to admit it was a reason the invasion had not progressed much since the platoon had been deployed.

Giroro was great at a lot of things, but being open with his own feelings was the one thing he could never do freely. Whenever Giroro becomes emotional he gets more defensive and reclusive; the only one able to reach out for him would be Garuru and even then the captain wont be able to get any further than the basic idea of the issue, or whatever it is that is giving his brother trouble. The nurse figured it might have been a part of Giroro's psych seeing he had been raised without a mother.

To a certain point, being a trainee in medics and psychology, Pururu worried if it was a reason the Corporal's health seemed to rise and fall in bouts, sometimes it would make her worry.

If it came down to it and Giroro confessed to Natsumi, and then somehow the Keron Army thought it would be all right to let him live, the least he'd get is be exiled and be unable to return to Keron. If things were pushed to the extreme he would either need to get himself Pekoponized, or Natsumi gets Keronized, which would be a sacrifice neither of them would be willing to take unless their commitment was serious.

But in the same time, if Rinono was interested in the red hard-boiled soldier, who was Pururu to deny her a chance of possibly swaying Giroro back to the motherland by developing feelings for someone of his own kind? It would serve the invasion in the end, and help Giroro get over the one thing that prevented him from fully completing his mission.

But then… there was Sergeant Major Kururu, and his possible crush on the Corporal. Chief Medic Pururu still wasn't sure if the Sergeant Major was fishing for a reaction, or was having actual feeling for the red invader. Kururu was an enigma at best.

For an instant, Chief Medic Pururu was not too keen about asking the pale orange Keronian if she was aware of her yellow brother's orientation; did she know if he was serious or not, or did she know anything at all? Bringing up such a delicate topic would be very awkward and the lavender Keronian did not want to cause trouble between the siblings. How was she supposed to answer this question without making things worse for either Giroro or Kururu?

Pururu found herself in a bind, and she had no clue how to get out of it…

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Elsewhere at the second floor of the Grand Star two members of a certain crew were sharing a table at a pastry shop.

Recruit Tororo stabbed the fork into the delicious and moist, puffed roll of sugary goodness and then shoved the chunk into his mouth, making murgling sounds as he spoke with his mouth full. Sitting opposite of him was Zoruru, expression never changing and blank to all around him, but not so much so to the salmon red tadpole keeping him company. Tororo could tell the half-cybernetic assassin was mulling over the conversation, thinking of what it could all mean.

"So what do you think? Should I risk it and plant tracker bugs all over their things?" Tororo inquired; he really wouldn't trust Kururu for a second, and though he didn't know much about the Corporal he didn't want to take any chances.

"Chances are Sergeant Major Kururu would be expecting that and would already have something ready, best you wait for the right moment to strike. Let him take the first move, you can counter it appropriately when it lands." The assassin replied, neutral.

"Yeah, I thought of that too, but then thought that knowing him he's not gonna make the first move and it might be easier if I do it first," the tadpole reasoned, then stuffed his mouth with another piece of sweets.

The assassin sighed and shook his head in negative, "Tororo, you need to remember that this prick has years of experience, and you're terribly impatient," the gray one muttered, almost scolding, "you need to _Not_ make the first move. If you make the first move then you've already lost."

"Pu! It might be similar to the assassin battle rules, but trust me, Zoruru, I'm not gonna lose to this old man, pu pu!" the young one chuckled, bits of sugar stuck to his lips.

Zoruru's lone eye half-lidded and another sigh followed, "Suit yourself, don't come crying when he whips your tail." He grumbled.

The two remained in the shop for a good few minutes before the purple figure of their leader made himself present at the doorway, yet never called out for them. Lieutenant Garuru managed a small smile at the sight of Tororo stuffing his face with cake and hot chocolate, while Zoruru had a fist to his metal chin and was looking out the shop's window.

The captain of the team only stood where he was for a minute, his stare focused and intent on the assassin. It didn't take Zoruru's senses long to tingle and sense him, the dark and red eye shifted in a subtle glance away from the window to the Keronian standing at the entrance of the shop.

Tororo was a little confused when the half-cyborg pushed up from his seat, Zoruru gestured that he just wanted to stretch his legs and will be back in a minute, so the young tadpole shrugged and continued eating; after all Zoruru was treating him this time, he didn't need to worry about the bill.

Zoruru walked in a slow, easy pace towards the captain who did not miss a beat, as soon as they stepped out of the shop the two walked together with a matching stride, soon they reached a nearby ward that was split into three directions with escalators and stairs towards the other sections and floors of the Grand Star. They found a nice spot near the vending machines and Garuru pretended to be casual in his stance, just having a chat with a team member, nothing out of the ordinary.

Garuru's yellow visor shone against the bright lights, questioning and perhaps agitated despite his will. "Did you find anything?"

"We're sticking a cane up a big wasp's nest, Garuru, I don't think it's possible to get out of this unscathed." Zoruru muttered, unhappy with the knowledge he had acquired through his excessive scouting.

It wasn't easy accessing some parts of the Grand Star because the security was always so tight, which was a reason Zoruru prided himself for being an excellent shadow, but being a member of such a job taught under the expert hands of Jirara made him a formidable foe, even if being a hired killer was an occupational hazard he had no qualms filling the role to the fullest. The elite guards protecting the upper levels did not stand a chance against him, they were but ants to his talons.

Admiral Koii, however, was beyond his league, and that served more to worry than scare him.

Although the gray-skinned and half robotic assassin located the lady's chamber, he was prevented from entering due to some sort of unrecognizable Dark Arts sealing the general vicinity, accompanied with some sort of static that continued to throw his cybernetic body out of whack. It almost felt as if something was trying to seize control of his cybernetics and turning him against his own body.

It terrified him because the touch was almost physical as well as mental! It was almost as if there was someone standing behind him and with invisible puppet strings, was forcing his scythed-hand to his face, as if about to gauge out his own eye. It was very, very disturbing. For the few seconds of being controlled, he could have sworn he was seeing the world through someone else's eyes; there was a strange tingling feeling in the back of his head as well, almost as if needles were being inserted under his skin and he found the sensation too alarming to be unreal.

As soon as he stepped out of the array surrounding the chamber he was able to regain his self control over the course of minutes, yet that did nothing to quell the throbbing of his heart against his ribs or the cold sweat dribbling over his flesh.

This woman was no normal Admiral who relied on technology, nor was she some half-wit assassin who replied on the assassin arts. This woman was a split of both which made her far more dangerous then he could comprehend. She used the Assassin's _Dark_ Arts, which combined with her rank and machines made her untouchable. He had no idea who she was or what she was capable of, but he could feel it in his bones, his captain and his team may not come out of this mission alive.

"Can you explain in detail?" Garuru spoke again in a more hushed tone, curious.

Zoruru glanced around for a moment then shook his head in negative; he could not explain anything, not here while they were surrounded by so many people. He was an assassin after all, and knew there must be shadow agents scattered across each and every floor, thus it was not safe to speak until they were sure it was safe.

Alas, the fates chose that their conversation would end there.

A guard who dressed in different yet formal attire similar to that of the upper levels approached the two with a salute, then proceeded to inform the purple lieutenant that their mistress wanted to have a private talk with him, while his remaining members will be escorted by another guard to their dorm. The identity cards had been issued and will be sent to the dormitory by tomorrow morning, thus they had the rest of the evening for themselves to rest.

Just as Garuru was about to inquire for further details, two guards arrived with a cranky Tororo tailing behind him.

Garuru suppressed an irate scowl; it seemed the Admiral was onto them and had already sent her men to prevent any further exchange of information from taking place. So far, he and Zoruru were the only ones knowledgeable enough to realize there was more to this mission than what was being told, and the deeper they dug the more unpleasant things they found, and the higher the risk of danger made itself present.

If the purple one didn't know any better, he'd say they were being prepared for a suicide mission.

Tororo was confused and angry; he was not yet done with his treats and didn't want to go to the dorm just to get stuck with Kururu again. Zoruru shushed him and said he would make up for it later, so it was best that the tadpole behaved for now. Since Zoruru would accompany him he encouraged that he will not let the yellow creep badger them. Tororo seemed to settle down with that and agreed to behave, though still pouting.

With that, Garuru watched the two being led away by the guards, while he was being guided to a different direction. Tossing one glance over his shoulder the lieutenant could not shake the foreboding feeling building in the pit of his stomach.

Garuru wondered if it was really a good idea to have such odd people cooped up in the same room without him there to make sure they don't slaughter each other.

He hoped Pururu and Giroro were having a better time than he was, they seemed to need more luck on their side.


	7. Upon a Seashore Strand

**. o 0 Chapter Seven 0 o .**

Hours had passed since the group of space-invading alien frogs gathered aboard the Grand Star.

Usually that would have not been an issue as there were oddities all over space, however this bunch in particular was by no means typical.

Zoruru grumbled to himself as he leaned back against the wall, his head tilted to the side just a little and his lone eye drooped in a sleepy manner, his cybernetic side was apathetic and lax while his fleshed side was rather restless and tense, wanting to get up and move yet knowing there was nowhere to go and nothing to do but to stay put and behave. His abilities were not needed and thus he had nothing to occupy his time with other than remaining on standby until ushered to do otherwise.

He sat on the floor with a knee propped up and his elbow resting on said knee, his flesh hand tight into a fist, flexing and tightening like some sort of exercise of self restraint. The tension coursing through his muscles left him on edge and it took a considerable amount of self restraint not to up and leave the dormitory.

After he had gone to seek out further information about their mission, he now had a better understanding as to why these certain individuals were selected, and though he still didn't know why in particular, he guessed only time would answer that question. Also, he could tell having these individuals placed within the same and close vicinity of one another was a recipe for disaster.

Lance Corporal Zoruru wondered if he was even going to be included in this mission, or if his expertise was needed.

After the gray skinned assassin arrived at the dormitory with Recruit Tororo, he found that Sergeant Major Kururu had already taken over the only computer device available, rendering it out of reach for his tadpole teammate who made his aggravation known through vocal complaints that, from the looks of things, went through one headphone covered ear and out the other.

Tororo was grumpy at having been denied his treats earlier and then not having access to the machine, but did not press the issue because it was clear the yellow Sergeant Major paid him not a lick of attention, as if he wasn't even there, which only served to make the tadpole even more agitated.

Seeing it was a lost cause the salmon-red hacker decided to keep distracted with something else, while keeping a mental note to read and keep track of what the yellow Sergeant Major was scripting. For a short while after that silence lingered until Taruru asked his teammate if there was anything interesting to speak of, which brought up a short conversation that soon followed with peace and quiet again when the two had nothing to talk about.

Corporal Giroro was checking through his things to ensure that he had not forgotten any of his belongings, and was counting his ammo as he went about sorting them. The red skinned invader had a rather large and variable selection of weaponry in his gallery; short range and long range guns, along with status or ailment altering triggers and bomb, as well as a few grenades of types and sorts the assassin was unable to recognize.

Zoruru had to admit that though most of these weapons seemed old fashioned and perhaps not very reliable, yet in the same time he… really had no clue what half of them even were, or what function they provided. Unlike Garuru's gallery that was more industrial and up to date, Corporal Giroro's selection was… strange, almost hand made, and fashioned in an obscure kind of way. There were odds and ends and strange knickknacks that seemed to resemble other old types of weapons, some that the assassin wondered if they were even still in production.

If it hadn't been for the fact that the Corporal's rucksack had weight and space compressing options, then the half-metal frog would have wondered how the other was even capable of carrying all of that, or fitting them into the bag for that matter. Why was Corporal Giroro carrying such monstrosities in his rucksack? These things could blow a crater at least three miles in diameter if they were cranked up to maximum output… where did he even _Get_ those things?

Oh, right… the yellow creep tapping away at the keyboard. Lance Corporal Zoruru nearly forgot what Kururu was capable of. The reminder was unpleasant.

In the entirety of the Keroro platoon, they got the nut-job megalomaniac and the trigger-happy gun maniac? Just wonderful…

Although thinking of the non-crazy persons within the room, Zoruru remembered that Chief Medic Shupepe had claimed one of the top bunker beds and took a nap, perhaps being the only one with a brain and knowing to stay out of sight, out of mind, and avoid being dragged into any sort of shenanigan these wayward frog invaders were capable of.

The assassin would swear that more often than not he would end up feeling more like a babysitter than anything else. Tororo alone was so demanding it made him come off as a bit of a spoiled child. Zoruru also knew for a fact Tororo and Taruru could be quite troublesome when they decide to put their combined efforts into something, and he remembered a time or two where he fell to their pranks; if it hadn't been for Garuru saving their rumps the gray Keronian would have tanned those tails like there was no tomorrow!

Recruit Rinono and Chief Medic Pururu had not yet returned which meant they were occupied with something elsewhere, and Lieutenant Garuru had been called away hours ago and had not returned to the dorm either. Although the assassin knew nothing of the two new names within the group, all he knew was that they were related to the yellow pest droning away on the keyboard, and being very noisy about it as well.

Zoruru was aggravated with the whole ordeal, alas there was really nothing he could do about it but be patient, sit and wait for Garuru to come back and perhaps hope for something to quell this anxiety with a satisfying amount of detail. He was too anxious to meditate, his mind swarmed with too much thought and it was almost impossible to keep his mind clear. Not knowing what they were up against with a mission of this degree did not sit well with the assassin, he could feel something quite terrible was waiting for them and they were powerless to prevent it.

Tororo and Taruru however were having a stress-free time across the room. They sat side by side to one another where they were seated next to the Corporal, and were asking questions every few minutes to inquire him of his weapons and their function and permission if they could touch or play with any of them.

The assassin could tell Giroro was growing agitated and annoyed by them with every passing minute, yet seemed to hold onto his patience and tolerated them nonetheless.

This, perhaps, was Zoruru's only source of entertainment, the Corporal was stretching himself like a rubber band and with time he was going to snap and lash out at those two, and the gray Keronian wanted to see what it would be like.

The Corporal was far more expressive than the captain, Zoruru realized, when Giroro was mad he'd shout and tell those kids to stop touching the arsenal and to keep their hands off, to approach with care and not mess around with these dangerous things because they were not toys, or else they will be getting their hides tanned.

Taruru was bright enough to know his place and seemed to be content with watching the Corporal tend to his gallery, and murmured to himself how Tamama never said the red soldier had such a mean temper.

Giroro grumbled at them for being such nosy children yet didn't make an attempt to shoo them away, instead he focused on working on the weapon he had in his hands, taking it apart to grease it and then put it back together.

Meanwhile, Tororo seemed to want nothing more than steal of a few pieces and play with them or something.

Zoruru sighed, the young recruit loved messing with these things, even if he wasn't too keen on creating such weaponry just yet. Tororo loved taking things apart and then trying to put them back together, and though his skills were more into breaking security than customizing weapons, he knew that studying a weapon by taking it apart was also a good exercise.

It didn't look like Giroro agreed to the tadpole's failed sneaky attempts, though. The Corporal was quick to smack the tadpole on the back of the hand and swipe away another weapon from his reach, growling at the recruit to damn keep off these things; they were not toys!

Tororo whimpered and rubbed the back of his hand, then threw a tantrum at the already angry Corporal but was soon silenced with the dead, cold navy-blue glare he received. Zoruru had to admit though the look was not directed to him, the fiery lashing anger could be felt at his side of the room; Corporal Giroro was livid and Tororo was really pushing his luck. Pressing any further and the Corporal _will_ tan that rear a good one.

The assassin was glad he didn't throw himself into the fry, something about the red one's anger felt far more scorching than the flames of Garuru whenever the lieutenant was mad. Or had the gray one not seen Garuru angry at full throttle yet? Only Keron knew…

After a moment Tororo succumbed in defeat, he didn't want to deal with any physical punishment delivered by a scary frog like the Corporal. Taruru, who had taken the chance to use Tororo's vocal complains as a cover had moved closer to Giroro's rucksack and peered into its depth. He looked like he was just messing around until he made a surprised noise and then pulled out.

"Is this… Pekoponian candy?" the young blue one said, looking at the strange folded item in his hands. "What exactly is it?" he inquired, offering the item to the salmon-red tadpole.

Tororo looked it over and stared, "It looks like regular white chocolate to me, pupu…" Tororo murmured, sounding far more pleased now since he had been granted something good to eat. He unfolded the side of the wrappings and took a sniff only to reel back with a snort, "Pu! It kind of smells like curry," he complained, now wondering why the old man had such a thing in his belongings. Flipping it over the recruit tilted his head in further confusion, "Says this thing is a- valentine?" he paused, even more confused and then he looked at the Corporal "What's a valentine?"

Giroro, by this point, his eyes dotted and his face paled to near white as a strangled squawk fled his lips upon seeing the candy that was discovered within his belongings, his skin was soaked in cold sweat and the breath had escaped his lungs, his mind could not process any coherent thoughts due to the shock that had shattered his mind. The weapons he was tending to fell to the floor with a loud clutter and some pieces went rolling away seeing they had not been properly put in place yet. Giroro felt his heartbeats throbbing in his throat, preventing any words from being spoken.

Seconds passed, the awkward silence lingered and grew heavier, and it was only then the gray-skinned Keronian noticed the sound of fingers over the keyboard had gone missing.

Sergeant Major Kururu had stopped his droning to turn around, glasses almost lit in an ominous shine as they reflected the lights and screen glow, still comfortable on his cushioned seat, his expression blank and unreadable he stared at the thing Taruru had found.

The sweets the Keroro platoon had produced for Valentines Day that one year had not seen production afterwards, so he knew the Corporal must have kept one; perhaps it was the one he had sampled when they first made them? His keen eyes could tell the slab of white chocolate was half eaten. Kururu's recipe was a perfect balance of spice and the sweetness of white chocolate, because he knew Pekoponians did not like spice with their candy and he had to make sure the flavor would be well received and the good would sell.

If Giroro, who leaned more to salty and bitter flavors rather than the sweet or spicy ones, had tried some then it should neither be too spicy or too sweet for the hard-boiled soldier, which made it tolerable and maybe even enjoyable.

There were at least twelve blocks in every bar, and he could only count five on the one Tororo was holding, which meant…

In only a second, Giroro felt like death warmed over when that massive, wide and toothy grin stretched across that yellow face, stretching far wider than the red one deemed sane or the least bit comforting, thus sending an iceberg of terror to plummet into the pit of his stomach. Kururu was leering at him with suppressed glee so hard, it made him shake and his bones rattled like dice in a bowl. Trying to speak was pointless as his body was still too petrified to comply.

"You know, senior," Kururu chuckled and leaned back into the seat slow and easy, and almost in a seductive manner he crossed one leg over the other, elbow on the chair's armrest he let his fingers trail over the side of his face with a finger at the corner of his bottom lip, a light fluster colored the yellow face giving it a tangy shade of orange, "I'm still waiting for your reply, kuku," he said, looking perhaps a bit too comfortable with the Corporal's discomfort.

Giroro flinched and grit his teeth, but the poor fellow was unable to form a coherent reply just yet.

Before Kururu could say anything else to further embarrass the distressed soldier, the dorm's door slid open with a soft hiss of steam and the two females returned. Chief Medic Pururu and Recruit Rinono were smiling and laughing at something; chances were that they were sharing a pleasant conversation until they stepped into the room with the door closing right behind them. They could tell from the heavy silence they walked into something quite unpleasant.

"Dare I ask?" Pururu began sounding uneasy; she didn't direct the question to anyone in particular.

"Depends," Kururu chuckled in reply, "how much do you really want to know?" he drawled, sinking in a very relaxed position.

The lavender female looked at the smug Sergeant Major, paused, and then looked at the terrified Corporal. The red one was pale and looked quite anxious, and his expression alone screamed '_Save me!_' without the need of any words being voiced. The nurse realized that perhaps it was best that she didn't ask. If Kururu had been traumatizing, or rather sexually harassing Giroro again, then it might be better to wait until they had a bit of privacy to ask her childhood friend for details.

After all he and Kururu were going to be stuck together in this mission, and she worried if it'll only make Giroro's health spiral into a worse condition than it already was. There was no need to make this issue public since she knew if the decision was up to him, then Giroro would really not want to discuss this topic at all.

Pururu sighed and put her fists to her hip, she looked at the cheeky yellow Keronian, "Sergeant Major Kururu, need I remind you that we are not here for child-play?" she somewhat chided, not angry just a little annoyed, "I would kindly ask you not stir any trouble."

The Major arched a skeptical brow and his smile became a bit more controlled, he shifted into a more serious sitting position and uncrossed his legs, elbows on the chair's armrests his let his fingers intertwine while he addressed her, "Kuku, you don't need to tell me the obvious, _ma'am_, I know my place and so should you." He chuckled again, and then ignored her flinch at his barb.

And with that, he shifted a hand and the chair twirled around to face the large screen again, choosing to disregard her in case she decided to chide him. Without wasting another minute, Sergeant Major Kururu went back to whatever it was he was doing on the machine. The flood of text continued as he picked up where he had left off, speedy fingers danced across the keyboard while more windows popped in and out.

Pururu felt the corner of her mouth twitch with the urge to punch the brat in the kisser, yet knew it would be ill-fitting and not very lady-like to react in a negative manner, especially in front of so many. Lieutenant Garuru ought to be back in a few and she didn't want to cause a mess by the time he got here. She needed to keep her cool. So with a huff she let her arms relax and flex a bit before heading towards the red Keronian who seemed to regain a bit of his composure, relief washed his features.

Whatever Kururu did seemed to set Giroro into a near panic-attack, and the lavender female was glad to see her friend was still coherent. Where Pururu knelt next to Giroro, she shooed the other two who were hogging a bit of his breathing space, and then took his hand to check his pulse. Taruru and Tororo remained seated nearby to watch her work, neither having a clue what just happened between the red and yellow teammates.

Zoruru seemed to relax, now knowing things ought to be all right with the nurse there to keep the yellow one at bay.

Giroro who was pale and shaken seemed to regain his senses, a light flush colored his already red skinned face, and the nurse was trailing her fingers over his wrists and chest to inspect and make sure he was doing alright. Although the others had not had any experience in nursing, they could tell Pururu knew what she was doing, and yet seemed oblivious to how it was making her friend shy off and look a little reluctant to answering her questions.

Rinono, who was neutral to the scene made no attempt to approach her brother or ask for details, instead she moved towards the free bunk bed that was not occupied and sat down, she watched the nurse inspect the Corporal for any possible damage. The gray-skinned Keronian could not help but notice the pale orange one seemed to be lost in her own world of thought, though. The way her lips were pursed and her eyes narrowed and unfocused, if only the most subtle bit, made it clear she was displeased with something.

Though the pale-orange Keronian was not too keen on what was going on, having known Kururu was involved somewhat explained the situation to her even without the need of actual details. Kururu tended to throw people into a loop even without meaning to, being there would be more than enough to make things complicated; it was just a part of his presence, something that even he did not really understand how it worked.

"That still doesn't answer my question," Tororo mumbled, more to himself than to those around him.

Since no one was going to explain, the tadpole looked over the candy again and moved the wrappings away to reveal the blocks of white chocolate. Although Tororo did not like spicy things whatsoever, the way this particular piece of sweet smelled made his mouth water. His curiosity got the better of him the Recruit did not bother asking permission, he snapped off a piece of chocolate then threw it into his mouth to chew thoroughly in order to sample the flavor.

And he flinched with a small, shrill 'Pu!' of surprise, eyes behind those thick glasses widened and his face flushed with color, the hand grabbing the chocolate tightened and the other twitched the fingers, he hurried to put a hand on his mouth to cover his mouth, a small, strange sound escaped his lips.

"Uh, Tororo, you okay?" Taruru spoke, his hands reached out a little hesitant towards his friend, "You're starting to shake." He noted, stating the obvious.

Giroro and Pururu snapped out of what they were doing to glance at the trembling child, and the two then noticed the missing piece from the chocolate. Silence lingered and Giroro felt his muscles tense; was the kid so shocked by the flavor he was unable to move?

A loud gulp could be heard as the tadpole swallowed the lump in his throat, chocolate included, released a small gasping noise and then heaved a breath, "I…" Tororo began, trembling, looking awed to say the least, "I think I died and went to heaven…" he murmured, giving the awkward silence a mild thought, he turned his attention back to the chocolate, then to the Corporal, "This is the best white chocolate I have ever tasted! Where did you get this?" he asked as he shoved himself closer face-to-face with the startled, red invader, almost demanding.

Giroro hesitated, well aware the kid will not like his answer.

But of course, someone else decided to take that privilege, "That Valentine chocolate was an invasion attempt, but due to circumstances at the time the mission never got off the ground, kuku," Kururu said, taking a moment to slow in his typing to hit a few keys and then allow a flood of text to script on its own, while he turned his attention back to the crew in order to give himself a moment to flex his fingers, "I created the recipe myself, glad you like that much, ku!" he leered once more, mischief twinkled in his glasses seeing his eyes were not visible.

Tororo's awe turned into mortified horror, his jaw slacked and his hands shook, the chocolate he was holding hit the floor with a subtle thump, and then silence hung heavy in the air once more. When Kururu began to laugh by the sound similar to his namesake, Tororo made a strangled noise and put a hand on his mouth again, only this time he looked like he was about to hurl.

Zoruru palmed his face and gave a low and agonized sigh of frustration, he would swear if this scenario got any more uncomfortable he was going to zero-slash the hell out of it! It was so painful it was making it hard to breathe, and as someone who wore a mask that was saying something.

And again, as if the fates had gotten tired of all the cascading awkwardness happening one after another, the door opened once more to reveal lieutenant Garuru carrying a large envelop. The captain stepped into the room and flinched when he had stepped on a bolt, a piece that had rolled away from Giroro's grasp just moments ago. Confused as to why such a thing was on the floor, the purple invader noticed there were a few other pieces lying about as well, so he gave the wayward selection of misfits a somewhat confused and startled look, sensing that something was amiss.

When Kururu stopped laughing and slipped a small 'tch' and turned to work on his machine again, the purple invader sent the assassin a questioning glance, already he could sense something very odd about the atmosphere and it was making his skin crawl.

Zoruru closed his eye and waved a dismissive hand, it was best that the purple one not give himself a headache with this nonsense.

Garuru decided he would take his teammate's warning and not bother asking, these troublemakers were probably up to no good again and he didn't feel like asking what it was all about. He will inquire the details some other time, seeing he had more pressing matters to attend to. Lieutenant Garuru walked into the room and revealed a remote he held in his hand, pressed a button and a levitating large coffee table appeared in the middle of the room.

While he placed everything on the tabletop, Garuru was not at all bothered by the fact that the Sergeant Major continued to drone on the computer and ignored him. The yellow Keronian was listening and paying attention even if it didn't seem like it, the purple invader was aware of that behavior and thought it was best to let the ever so mischievous Sergeant Major have his space, there was no point pressuring him considering what they were going up against.

Speaking of which, it was about time he enlightened the group to what this gathering was all about.

The lieutenant used the remote to click a few more buttons, and a large box appeared on the tabletop as well with some sort of seal wrapped around it, and a security lock requesting the password or code number to be inputted in order to grant them access. Garuru input the number and then pressed the large button below. The box started making beeping noises before it gave a jingle, followed by the loud hissing of steam being released. The box expanded in size as lines took form around it and separated it into sections, then it transformed into a small table-like object that revealed two miniature drawers.

Lieutenant Garuru reached to the first drawer and pulled it out, then took out a set of cards that were there. He called for First Class Private Taruru to take the cards and hand them out by name.

A moment later the purple one frowned ant looked at Recruit Rinono, "I do not see Chief Medic Shupepe, where is he?"

"He's at the top bunk taking a nap," Zoruru interjected, "He's been up there for well over an hour, maybe it's about time we woke him up?"

"Nope," Rinono said in a rather loud and somewhat humored tone, "A word of warning from the wise, you do _NOT,_ under any circumstances or if you values the thought of your head attached to your shoulders, attempt to wake my brothers when they're asleep, or I hold no guarantee you wont be missing and arm or a leg by the time it's over." She cautioned, looking perhaps a bit sheepish. "And remember, kneecaps are optional." She said as she wagged a finger, almost with a joking tone.

"Tell me about it," Giroro mumbled, more to himself than to the others.

The hard-boiled soldier then tossed an awkward scowl at the chuckling Sergeant Major, who was still slaving away on the computer device.

The Corporal remembered a time where the platoon had gone to a sort of training camp for a week. He was sharing his tent with Kururu and Dororo at the time since Tamama had somehow convinced the blue assassin to bunk in Giroro's tent, instead of spending the night with Keroro and Tamama's tent as it was originally planned.

Giroro could not remember what he was looking for, but he had made too much noise at the middle of the night and the racket caused Kururu to wake groggy as well as sporting a very malicious mood. Kururu had been so irate he had literally picked up and thrown the Corporal out the tent to land face-first into the dirt, and then spend the rest of the night outside.

Giroro could not remember a time where he had seen Kururu so mad, and boy did the yellow one thrash him for disturbing the peace. He always thought Kururu was not much of a morning person, but that event only served to add more nightmare fuel to his turmoil. Kururu was a lot stronger than the Corporal had given him credit for.

Choosing that moment to speak, Garuru opened the second drawer to reveal a small projector; he grabbed the lens and directed it to the large computer screen Kururu was still using, "Sergeant Major Kururu, if possible, could you put what you're doing on hold? Our mission briefing requires the use of the screen." The lieutenant approached, careful and calm.

Kururu's head tilted to the side just a bit, a small 'tch' followed and the string of rapid keyboard clicking slowed, later Kururu finished up what he was doing and hit a few more keys to save his progress, tucking everything he had in the works down the taskbar and thus left the main screen blank. Once finished he put a foot to the floor and pushed his levitating seat backwards and away from the projector's way, then leaned back and gestured for the purple one to continue.

Garuru gave a hushed thanks you before he aimed the projector at the screen, picked up the remote to click a few buttons the lights dimmed and the doom darkened, the lieutenant then picked something from the second drawer that looked like a miniature disk and inserted it into the back of the projector, after that he flicked a switch and a soft scratching sound followed, fell silent then the light of the projector beamed against the screen.

At first it was blank, then a loading bar appeared, so after it reached one hundred percent some small text appeared below it, requesting the user to press a button on the remote to analog and flip through the files provided. Garuru pointed the remote at the machine and then clicked a button, after a minute six panels appeared revealing profile pictures of those included in the mission, along with their rank and special expertise.

Lieutenant Garuru was their captain during this mission and the one giving orders, he was also the main line of physical defense during any possible battle they would come across, with Corporal Giroro as the main line of physical offense and firepower who's job was to ensure everyone's safety as a priority, unless ordered otherwise. Sergeant Major Kururu was the second in command and the main Defense unit with Tororo as his backup support, as the mission required security gaps to be protected in case of possible viral attacks.

Chief Medic Shupepe and Recruit Rinono were backup medical and frontal support, they were not given any detailed role.

The remaining members of the Garuru Platoon were to remain on the Grand Star as back-up should the mission require more arms later.

The Keroro Platoon however, had been disregarded as candidates for some reason and were not included in the list.

Where Taruru whined at being counted out of the mission, Lance Corporal Zoruru seemed neutral and passive to the whole thing. Pururu pursed her lips, not happy with being excluded from this as well, but chose not to complain, it seemed that her medical expertise was not needed since Shupepe was already a member.

Tororo made his displeasure known by complaining loud and whiny to the lieutenant how he did not want to be the Sergeant Major's errand boy, that he was better than this and wanted a different role. Alas, Garuru shushed him and told him to voice his complaints later, since the briefing session was not yet over.

Flipping to the next page, there was a list of requirements that needed to be fulfilled before they took off on this mission. A text report of Chief Medics Pururu and Shupepe were going to give the team a thorough checkup before being deployed, which included physical fitness as well as counseling, much to Kururu's aggravation. Garuru was reading the report out loud and giving them a pause every now and then to see if anyone had any questions.

Of course, during the rather one-sided conversation the Corporal crossed his arms and stared at the screen, uncertainty and suspicion written on his features.

There was a vessel being prepared to take them to their destination and it will take off as soon as everything had been prepared. There was a section at the side of the file showing the vessel and its features, as well as a short list of the basic things they will be taking with them on this journey. There were stocks of rations, food and medical supplies, as well as ammo and some featured weapons installed into the body of the vessel as well for aerial combat.

Were they expected to battle in the sky before landing, or was it a security measure? The Corporal couldn't tell.

Still, looking at the images provided Giroro could not help but feel wary regarding the whole thing. The vessel he could see in the briefing file looked like one of those jumbo-shipment cargo planes and not a militia vessel; nor was it the type that was maneuverable in a sky battle so why were they granted such a ship? Was there something else they weren't being told? Why would the Keron Army dispatch such a massive goliath of a space craft for just six members? Did they really need all that food and supplies?

Although in afterthought, the ship was not going to fly itself, so the Corporal guessed a team of at least twenty other members were required to maintain and pilot the ship and all its needs. The six of them were needed to be aboard the ship, that didn't mean they were going to stay there the whole time; it was a method of transportation after all.

Still why a ship of this size for a mission that had yet to be explained to them?

Garuru, seeing there were no questions from the crowd, flipped past a few more images showing the interior and exterior of the ship, a general preview of the size and space the craft provided, its speed and power as well as its assets, and then some basic previews of the weapons installed inside and outside, the security measures, and their dormitory within the ship.

It looked like the ship was meant to be more a traveling base than just a method of transportation, so that explained a bit why so much had been put in stock.

Regardless of the details about the mission itself that had yet to be explained, they were assigned as a team handpicked by their superior, Admiral Koii, who was going to join them on the ship to personally supervise them, in order to carry out a special mission aboard a planet within the Gamma system titled 'Wasuru TE' approximately 42 space hours from the Grand Star. The Admiral was going to be in a separate chamber in an upper level aboard the ship, something like the cabin room just a short distance from the main bridge.

The part that had both Giroro and Kururu tense was the last page; Zoruru and Pururu could not help but notice the two flinch when the captain reached that last page, making the assassin far more wary than the confused nurse. The lavender female looked at the screen to try and figure out what made her childhood friend so uneasy.

There was going to be a very important shipment placed aboard the vessel, and it was their utmost priority to protect it until they reach their destination, because it held vital importance to what their task ahead required them to do once they got there. From what she could tell all that was shown on the briefing photos was a massive tank, it was full of bubbling and glowing violet and deep purple fluids with the Keron Army's symbol tapped around the glass, obscuring the shape of whatever was inside.

From the image of a superior surrounded by a deck of armed soldiers standing next to the tank, the thing was about the same size of an adult Pekoponian, but the shadowed figure within looked anything but Pekoponian. Aside the bio-hazardous material warning added to the side of the tank, there was nothing else special or noteworthy about the tank, what it contained or what it was all about, but the mission was ranked S-plus, which meant is was a very delicate and top secret mission.

Whatever was in that tank, it was not going to be pretty if things went wrong.

Giroro turned to look at Kururu, who in turn turned to look at him as well almost as if hearing each others thoughts. The two stared at one other for only as long as the lights were still dim. As soon as Garuru turned the lights back on to continue explaining some minor details, the yellow and red Keronians were absorbed into their own minds.

Pururu, attention divided between her friend and her captain speaking, did not need to hear them speak as the gleam in their eyes, or glasses, was enough to tell her they shared a similar line of thought and it was something they were not going to share. For a second, Chief Medic Pururu wondered just how well in sync those two odd Keronians were; Giroro seemed to work so well with Kururu when the Sergeant Major wasn't giving him hell.

Meanwhile, unknown to the rest of the group, save for Zoruru who chose not to bring it up, Chief Medic Shupepe stopped peeking from under the curtains of his bunk bed and curled away, a disturbed and saddened look on his features he buried his face into the pillow and tried to ward away the demons of his mind. Rinono who had a better control of her feelings squeezed her hands together as she kept a mellow, passive face as much as possible, listening to the captain as he spoke, but her mind lost somewhere else altogether.

Zoruru was not pleased. The way the red, yellow and pale orange members were acting left a bad taste in his mouth.

The assassin watched, silent and perceptive. As soon as the chance presented itself he will have to share this with Garuru.

When and if the chance presented itself…


	8. Am I Alone?

**. o 0 Chapter Eight 0 o .**

Space had always been measured as an endless beyond that had no boundaries, full of things that even the wisest of men could neither grasp nor explain.

And with that, it was believed to say that the mind was a similar world if not a far more complex realm to dwell into.

Whereas the galaxy itself was a world with adventure and dangers to be explored and overcome, ones mind could be a far more dangerous land to trek, lost and alone.

The night time curfew patrol within the depths of the Grand Star was more an estimation of the shifting of time from night to day rather than an actual timed schedule, because the grand mothership of the Keron people traveled through the great heavens of space in ways many could not fully comprehend, and with that the measurement of time itself was but a guessing game to travelers who did not equip themselves with the proper tools of time-and-space traveling, more so if they had been doing it through long distances rather than short ones.

Where the lower sections of the Grand Star were still bustling with activity of newly arrived and recently deployed members, coming and going from all across the planetary systems, the members of the dormitories within the elite floor had been coated by a blanket of quietness and silence, as the people who occupied the rooms had all gone to bed seeing the floor in particular had a curfew they needed to abide by.

Or so the night-watch guards believed when they passed by. Listening out to any noises and finding none meant that those within the dorm were sleeping, and with that they continued on their travel, paying little to no mind to the near silent shifting of a single shadow slithering above their heads, sneaking elsewhere.

Inside the dormitory Corporal Giroro released a long exhale through the nose and then pushed away from his pillow, unable to find any solace with the disturbing silence filling his ears. His hand landed on the folded vest he had taken off earlier, so he tucked it under the pillow so it would not be in the way.

He was unable to sleep, the lack of noise within the room kept him up. It was the kind of silence that would put him on edge, a sort of calm before the storm, the type that was so eerie and muted the fall of a pin on the smoothed marbling flooring would be enough to make his heart skip a beat in surprise.

He pulled at the curtains veiling his bedding slow and easy as to avoid making any sudden noises, and to let his bunking area cool by allowing the air to change. He placed his hand on his belt if only to reassure his mind that it was still there, that he was safe and had no reason to be alarmed.

With a soft sigh he glanced at the underside of the bunk bed above him, wondering if his brother was awake or not; he really wanted to talk to someone yet didn't want to be a bother. Garuru had only turned in for the night after making sure Tororo and Taruru had fallen asleep, tucking them in while he was at it as if he was their babysitter.

Giroro managed a tiny smile at the thought; Garuru could never go to asleep knowing the others were still awake.

Ever since they were kids Garuru only slept after Giroro had done so first. Why? The Corporal could never figure it out; his only explanation would be that Garuru felt responsible for Giroro's well being so he had taken it upon himself to keep watch to ensure his little brother was resting properly.

Sometimes when they were really young and their father was called away for duty, they would have the whole house to themselves and no babysitter would be appointed seeing they were old enough to take care of one another. If it came down to it, Keroro's mother would come over to tend to their needs during the day, or they would be staying over at the green Keronian's house during their father's absence. Of course the brothers did not like to impose on Keroro's family and would often decline whenever it was possible, preferring to handle things themselves and be responsible for their own needs.

But some other times, Giroro would feel a sense of abandon with their father away on a dangerous mission, and be unable to sleep during the first few hours of the night and thus Garuru would not allow himself to sleep until Giroro had gotten comfortable enough to sleep.

It was only after their father had granted Giroro the belt, passed down from their mother, that the Corporal could find solace alone without Garuru there to keep him company. Of course the red invader only started wearing the belt when he joined the Keron Army. The years before that he had always kept it on his desk or under his pillow for safe keeping and treated it as a family heirloom, something akin to that of a good luck charm.

Giroro had no memories of his mother, but Garuru and their father would always tell him tales of her; she was a strong, passionate and loving woman with a very feisty temper, perhaps to the point that even their dad was intimidated by her in ways he did not wish to explain. Giroro remembered a time where his father was drunk and started rambling about their mother, drawling and slurring something about her beating the ever loving pulp out of him in a dual, and how he was smitten with her ever since…

Although their father would never tell them what happened to her or where she went, or if she was even still alive or not, Giroro decided it was for the best not to question things that can not be changed.

The red Keronian shook his head as he realized he was drifting and rambling to himself. He glanced up at the bunk bed above him again, having been staring at the wall across the room as he was lost in his thoughts.

The red invader knew for a fact that Garuru was a very light sleeper and sometimes a lucid sleeper at that, so perhaps his big brother was awake? Garuru would often tell him that he'd achieve a sense of solace and epiphany whenever he meditated during a lucid dream, he had encouraged Giroro to try the technique, but the hard-boiled soldier could never find the peace of mind to get into the mindset.

He would either not be able to focus, or sleep like a rock…

Absent minded he looked down at the floor from where he was perched in the middle row of the bunk beds, and somehow the red invader was not at all surprised to see a light emitting from the bunk bed below him, the one that Kururu occupied.

The light slipped from under the curtain which implied a device of sorts was being used. Giroro was certain no hand-held devices were available when they were told to turn in for the night, so where did the Sergeant Major get his hands on one, unless he had brought something in when the others weren't looking?

Choosing to investigate, Giroro was careful to climb down the ladder without making too much noise since he knew Garuru was sleeping in the bunk bed above his own. Shupepe took the one across of Garuru's bed, while Tororo took the one below the Medic, leaving Taruru to take the one at the bottom across Kururu's bed.

The half-metal assassin was no longer in the room though, and the Corporal wondered where the gray Keronian had gone off to. It was curfew time and they needed to sleep, even if the assassin was not going to partake in the mission there was no reason for him to run off, was there? The red soldier wondered if the Assassin even needed to sleep, and then glancing at the ceiling he found that there was no one there pretending to be a spider or a bat or anything, not from what he could tell, so it was safe to assume Lance Corporal Zoruru was not present.

Pururu and Rinono had already been dismissed to rest in a separate room, so there was no point worrying about them, he guessed.

Giroro approached the bunk bed below his and listened to any possible tapping of fingers on keyboard, though he was surprised to hear none he hesitated for a second before speaking, "Oy, Kururu, are you awake?" he called in a very hushed voice.

With the odd chance the Sergeant Major was asleep and had perhaps forgotten some lights on, the Corporal did not want to risk another thrashing by waking the yellow monster. A cranky Kururu was a spooky Kururu.

A few seconds passed and the Corporal could hear a light tapping sound followed by the body shifting on the mattress, the light died and then the one behind the curtains pulled at the sheet to reveal how he was awake as well. Kururu was laid down in a rather playful pose with the pillow tucked under his arm and his knees together with ankles apart; he stared at the red frog for a moment before grinning wide and then patting the free space on the bed in an inviting gesture.

At the torn awkward-traumatized stare he received from the Corporal, Kururu gave a low chuckle before he pushed up to stop with the teasing and then spoke in a humored tone, "I take it you couldn't sleep either, senior? I'm pretty sure you're not looking for a bunk-buddy either, kuku…" he then pushed off the mattress a little more to sit at the edge of the bed, and then scoot aside to offer a seat, "I'm guessing you want to talk?" he grinned.

Giroro, after getting over the initial shock, felt a light fluster color his face and chose to ignore the others infuriating advances, he remained standing if only to keep out of the others reach, "What were you doing?" he inquired, wanting to get right to the point.

Kururu stared at him a moment longer, the smile twitched into a slight scowl and he turned around to pull something from under the pillow. The Sergeant Major revealed a small handheld item and flipped it open, flashing the Corporal's night-adjusted vision with the blindingly bright light, "It's Leader's 3D gaming touch-pad, kuku," he chuckled, and then snapped the gaming pad shut with a clap, "The brat found it in your rucksack when you were using the washroom earlier; I bet you a gundam model leader lost it there." He added.

Giroro was unable to suppress the groan of irritation as he palmed his face, more so at the thought of Keroro tormenting him even without being there, than seeing spots and squiggles across his bleared vision due to being assaulted by the blinding bright light of the gamepad.

Kururu did not look at him, and instead flipped the pad open again and just stared at whatever was on the screen before he was interrupted. So with a huff, the Corporal decided there was no point in being tense and stepped forward, accepting the seat that was offered he settled onto the cushy mattress right next to Kururu and leaned forwards, his elbows on his knees he stared at the floor in near silence.

Kururu stared at the puzzle game he was playing, undisturbed by the thought that there were only two inches separating him from physical contact with the other. His glasses gleamed bright as they reflected the glow of the gamepad's screen.

He had solved most of these from the first or second try so they weren't all that hard, and yet he found himself replaying the same puzzles more than once just to see how many times he could finish them. It soon got boring by the third run so for the sake of trying something different he started trying to solve the puzzles while the gamepad was upside down. It did little to make the game interesting, but it was better than nothing.

He just needed something to get his mind off the mission, he didn't like what he saw and his perceptive mind was making things worse by over-analyzing all the details.

Sometimes he felt it was a curse being a genius, what would he do to be oblivious and daft like a certain person sitting right next to him, it would have made life so much easier. Kururu didn't mean to sigh out loud, so when the Corporal turned to look at him he braced himself for the possible question; which, to his unexplainable disappointment did not came. Although the reaction was not immediate however, Giroro pushed off his knees to sit up and glance at the game the other was playing.

It was a good five whole minutes later that the red soldier spoke, "Is there something on your mind?" he said, tone almost tender. "Cause it seems to me like you're the one who wants to talk," he commented.

Kururu did not understand why his squared shoulders slacked at that calm tone of voice, but it made him feel giddy in a weird kind of way. The Sergeant Major lowered the gamepad and with a soft clap folded it closed and then shoved it under the pillow. He turned his head just a little back to the Corporal and was quiet, trying to think of what to say.

"I don't like how Koii isn't giving us the whole story yet," he admitted.

Giroro did not need a second thought to pick up the scathing tone from the yellow one, and it was enough o set a bit of alarm in the ever so easily paranoid Keronian, "Care to fill me in on what you know?" he asked, resisting the urge to fully face the other, if not grab him by the shoulders and demand an explanation.

"Ku… I don't know if you'd really want to know what I know, ya know?" he said at first with a playful tone, and then turned his full attention to the Corporal, "Senior, could you promise me something?" the yellow one sounded tense.

"… what?" Giroro blinked, now thrown off the topic for a bit "What is it?" he inquired.

"This mission," Kururu began, hands clenched together and fingers intertwined, his brows knit in a sign of worry, "we're being set for bait and I don't know if there is anything I can do about it, not yet, not without more info to work with." He explained.

At seeing the further confused reaction from the red soldier the yellow one chose to continue, "The whole time I was working on the computer? I was trying to break the security to get into the main motherboard in order to get the complete files regarding our mission, but…" he hesitated, shoulders squaring again, "It… was almost as if there was no mission to speak of, I did all the searching by name, date and relation, the log always came out empty. I couldn't find any trace of it in the system so it was either never submitted, got deleted, or it is being kept on a completely different machine that has no connectivity to the one aboard the Grand Star." He muttered.

"Also, that tank shown in the photos had a lot of security wrapped around it, and though it was not very visible I think I saw some array seals etched into the glass; whatever that thing was it is very lethal, and if this mission goes south I don't think any amount of technology would be good enough to prevent it from doing whatever it was made to do."

"So you're saying we're being prepared as something like a sacrifice?" Giroro growled, eyes in blue and fangs bared.

Kururu shook his head in negative, "Not left for dead, no. With me involved, she wouldn't go that far." He waved a dismissive hand, "It's more like we're bait; whatever is going on Koii needs us to be there to lure it out…" he muttered, "I'm gonna have to inspect the tank in person before I can explain anything, but if my guess is correct it would explain why the others were not included in this mission, frowny-face and Lance Corporal Dororo to be exact." he paused, and seeing the startled look on the Corporal the Sergeant Major continued, "The magic seals on the tank, they were Dark Arts from the Assassin's techniques, and although I'm not too keen on all the patterns I know a magic circle when I see one, kuku…"

"Whatever is in the tank is a monster, and if only Dark Arts are powerful enough to keep them at bay; then since Koii herself knows the arts I'm really not supposed to be surprised to see them. I should have seen it coming." He muttered again. "Though to think she'd go so far, she must be getting desperate…" he muttered.

"Why do you address her by name and not by rank?" Giroro murmured, noting that tidbit just then. "You make it sound like you know her."

"I do, more than I care to think about, kuku…" the yellow one grinned, but the red invader could tell it was forced, "I'll just say that she and I have a master-student relationship; she grates on my nerves and I grate on hers and yet in the end we both learn something out of it, ku," he chuckled, though it came halfhearted. "It was kind of fun for a while, but then she just… came undone." He murmured in a near saddened tone, more to himself than to the Corporal.

The conversation went silent, but only for a moment, "Do you believe… she's in a condition to lead this mission?" the Corporal asked, anxious.

Kururu shook his head in negative, "She's nuts, even I wouldn't want to mess with her now, but so as long as she's an Admiral there is really nothing I can do about it." he confessed, his voice coming off rather agitated, "In fact, she's the reason I've been demoted from Major when I brought up her mental issues." He shrugged.

Giroro needed a moment to register what the yellow one just told him, the answer was not at the very least reassuring. If anything, the Corporal found it far more alarming than he cared to admit, and the pace his heart was beating at assured him this was by no means a bad dream; this was real.

The Corporal knew Sergeant Major Kururu did not learn everything on his own, and must have had some sort of teacher guiding him through the steps. Just as Giroro had Garuru to show him the right way, Kururu must have had a very patient tutor.

The red Keronian leaned forwards with his elbows on his knees again and stared at the floor, trying to digest this information a moment longer. Kururu did not move or attempt to explain any further, he kept his hands clasped together and stared at the ground as well, but Giroro could tell the yellow invader was perhaps a bit beside himself at having told the Corporal so much.

For a moment Giroro wondered if Kururu just wanted to get the load off his chest, and needed a friendly ear or someone to talk to?

Sure he and the Sergeant Major did not get along too well, and often did not see eye to eye around certain things, but the Corporal would tolerate the other if things were moderated and leveled between them, and by chance did not involve getting Natsumi tangled into the mess. It was only when Kururu and Keroro were being mischievous and playful that it would grate on Giroro's nerves, and even then he could never bring himself to outright hate either of them.

Kururu was never the kind of guy to willingly share such information, not something so close and personal, and Giroro felt that would say so much about his superior's trepidation regarding this mission and what they were up against. This was serious as well as delicate information that Kururu wanted- _needed_ to share for some reason, and whether or not it would come in useful later Giroro respected the others choice.

"Why are you telling me this?" Giroro surprised himself when he spoke, he never meant to voice out his thoughts.

"Because I want you to promise me something," was the near immediate reply. Kururu looked at the Corporal with a somewhat stoic stare, "Don't trust me; suspend your belief. If push comes to shove and we get separated then just let me be; I can't guarantee the others safety if you get too close." He told, cryptic.

Giroro stared, the feel of cold sweat on his skin had him tremble for only a second but he braved on, pushed off his elbows and stood up straight, the red Keronian clapped a hand to the yellow one's shoulder, perhaps harder than he intended to, and those deep navy eyes looked at the reflective glasses that hid the surprised, and perhaps confused reaction of the Major, and the fanged smile from the Corporal made Kururu stiffen, perplexed.

"It's going to be a long day tomorrow, so it would be best to try and get some sleep." He comforted a bit too loudly, looking as if the message had gone through one ear and out the other.

Of course, that damn nice voice of his was too damn cheerful to the yellow one's ears as well, which only served to make the corner of Kururu's mouth to twitch. Giroro gave the yellow shoulder a second yet lighter pat and then moved away and back to the ladder, never once looking back at the thick glasses following him. The red invader climbed up and back to bed, he wished the Sergeant Major a good night's rest before pulling the curtains.

And Kururu sat still and stared at the bunk bed above him, his mind thrown into a torrent of mystification.

The yellow one could not explain the awkwardness he felt, but something about Giroro's gesture was… sweet, in a disgustingly uplifting kind of way. Plus, the Corporal never agreed to the promise, so did he still harbor trust to the Sergeant Major despite the request not to, or was there no actual way for him to answer to that request?

The higher ranked Keronian shook his head with yet another 'tch!' and threw himself onto the mattress, yanked the curtains, shoved himself at the pillow and stuffed his face into its cool mass if only to try and ignore the nice tingles playing over his warmed cheeks.

How was he supposed to be able to sleep when the Corporal decided to be such a damn nice dolt all of a sudden? It made his heart race… damn it all to hell…

Kururu did not regret opening up to the other as it served to make him feel a whole lot better even if he knew he shouldn't, as well as knew it was only going to be a short lived moment and the consequences were going to bite him on the butt sooner or later. For the next few minutes he didn't care, he appreciated the solace it offered him and latched onto it for as long as it lasted. Even though he was thinking to himself for a few more minutes after that, Kururu succumbed to his weary senses and did not take long to drift into dreamland.

It was only a good fifteen minutes later that Garuru allowed himself a small fanged smile, and then rolled over to get some shuteye. Being a light sleeper was sometimes a blessing and a curse, at least this time it served to indulge him with something he could work with. He was never one to eavesdrop on purpose so on the plus side the conversation he overheard helped explain a lot of things.

Now it was just a matter of time until Zoruru returned, perhaps once come morning they could discuss this over breakfast.

He just hoped there would be no more interruptions…

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

The hours continued on as the night turned into day despite the fact that there was neither sun nor moon to calculate the change in pace.

The bustling activity aboard the Grand Star grew louder, and so did the activity on the floors above.

On the Elite floor, there were separate room service attendants for each dorm to keep the groups within their private chamber.

The earlier night dinner had been served a little later than usual, and because of that Tororo had woken up too early to complain how he was famished and wanted something good to eat. Garuru, ever the attentive leader, did not hesitate to call for the room service to prepare something for his team. Today was going to be very busy for his mismatched team of wayward troublemakers, and they needed to be nourished in order to embrace the day with all its possible flaws.

One thing bothered him, however. Lance Corporal Zoruru had yet to return to the dormitory and the Lieutenant wondered if the assassin had been caught, or was somehow prevented from returning. With the off chance that Zoruru had been caught then the ones in charge would approach him to inform him of his team member, but if Zoruru had gone somewhere within the lower floors then he may have been prevented from accessing the upper floor again.

Since Zoruru had not been among the group granted access cards, it was possible he was blocked from coming back in. Although if that was the case couldn't he just make a call and request Garuru's assistance to return?

That is when the sound of the washroom's door with a low hiss as it slid open, a loud yawn followed when Shupepe stretched and walked out, still a little groggy even after hours of being asleep. The pale blue Keronian had already taken off his trench coat and other clothes, and had replaced them with snug sweatpants and shirt. They were going to have a health examination today so he wanted to be prepared before they started anything.

As soon as the Medic stepped away Taruru made his way into the restroom to take care of business, and the pale blue Keronian plopped down to the floor next to the Corporal, who was sorting out and tidying up his belongings.

Kururu lay in his bunk bed without bothering to conceal himself behind the curtains, on his back with his head propped up by the pillow, one leg crossed over the other and messing around with the gamepad, and yet seemed to have no trouble ignoring the music put on maximum in a terribly cheery tune. No one bothered asking him where he had gotten the thing or what he was playing, which suited the yellow Sergeant Major just fine.

Tororo, who was cranky and waiting for their breakfast to get there, lay on his belly over a cushion to keep off the floor and stared at the red invader. He had tried to work on the master computer but ever since Kururu finished working on it, the giant hunk of junk refused to start up or reboot altogether. The machine had shut down and no attempt of hotwiring to trigger it to restart had been successful, thus leaving the salmon-red young invader to complain and rant at the unresponsive item of his dismay.

Meanwhile Lieutenant Garuru leaned back against the comfortable chair with his elbow to the levitating coffee table, his eyes to the group and his mind to his brother. There was a hint of a mellow smile on that purple face, the captain watched his sibling pick up the pieces of his weapons with care and precision, and after some time had managed to finish working through the gallery to ensure it was all in place and ready to be used.

Of course, that also meant that Giroro had finished his preparations and had nothing else to do for the rest of the day. On Pekopon, the hard-boiled soldier would either go on a patrol around the area, start a campfire and bake some sweet potatoes, or play with the cat, but now none of those were available and he had no hobby to speak of to keep him entertained.

A minute later Taruru returned and made his way to the bunk bed to plop down and yawn, the young blue colored Keronian was a little drowsy. Shupepe, on the other hand, seemed to tilt his body sideways against the Corporal's large backpack and dozed off again, not snoring or drooling, yet his mouth was somewhat open while his eyes were closed.

Garuru resisted the urge to roll his eyes; he had been enlisted such a tardy bunch.

Giroro stood up and stretched his arms over his head, and then started flexing and rolling his shoulders. He was tense and his muscles felt a bit uncomfortable, he wanted to exercise a bit to try and vent out the discomfort, but the room was not made to provide for any physical activates.

"Looking for something?" Garuru spoke, looking at his brother in mild interest. The lieutenant had an elbow on the tabletop with his fist to his cheek, one ankle crossed over the knee, the leader seemed a little bored with having nothing to do as well.

Giroro smiled, a little sheepish and flustered, "I, uh, don't suppose there is a gym on this floor?" he asked, kneading and rubbing his biceps to try and soften the tightened muscles.

Garuru straightened up a bit before answering, "Not that I'm aware of; there is a gym on the lower floor, however if you leave now you'll miss breakfast." He said, paused for a second then brandished a fanged smile, "Need to stretch?"

"Kind of," the Corporal admitted, muttering, "my body is kind of killing me."

"Need a back massage?" Shupepe spoke, drawled and lazy yet awake nonetheless, a cheery little smile stretched across his lips.

Corporal Giroro looked at the medic for a moment before he nodded once, "If it's not too much trouble?"

"Not at all, just sit down and let me handle this." The pale blue one grinned and flexed his hands.

With that, Garuru leaned back into his seat again and watched as his little brother sat down again, legs buckled underneath him he gave his back to the Medic. The first thing Shupepe did was attempt to place his hands on the back of Giroro's shoulders, hesitated for a moment and then asked the Corporal to remove the belt.

The gleam of alarm on his little brother's eyes did not go amiss to the lieutenant, for he knew very well what the belt represented to his younger sibling. Garuru as well found a tiny part of him growing tense at that request. That belt was more than just a leather strap or a memento from their mother, it was practically Giroro's only lifeline. If anything happens to the belt it would be like taking away his very fighting spirit, leaving behind nothing but a shambled shell of insecurities.

It was unlikely that anyone knew this, but Giroro and Garuru's belts were two out of three that formed the full set. The third belt was still with their father, hidden under his much wider green belt. The three had each taken a part of the set in memory of their missing family.

"You don't need to take it off, senior, just pull it down or something," Kururu announced from where he was hiding, eyes still to the gamepad and looking quite bored with it he clapped it shut and rolled onto his belly to watch his brother and the other.

Giroro was still reluctant and even more flustered at the thought, but chose to try and not fret so much just so he won't add anymore awkwardness to his baggage. He reached up to lower the belt off his shoulder and slid it down his arm, now leaving the blue strap nestled around him with the buckle on his lap, and with that action granting the medic behind him the working space to try and weed the tension and discomfort from his back.

Kururu watched the Corporal slide down the belt with a placid expression, but his inside was anything but calm; it took him much self restraint from grinning in glee at the delicious yet innocent motion. Kururu had one arm pillowed under his chin and the other dangled over the side of the bed, he watched Shupepe trace fingers over that fine red spine and ask the Corporal if anything hurt before kneading some sorts, wanting to know how to work on making the ache earlier to deal with.

Sergeant Major Kururu felt something brew in the pit of his stomach and it was starting to excite him, though he did not want to know where it was coming from or why he was feeling that way. He blamed it on his empty stomach, so while he was still holding the device he muttered as he addressed the purple Keronian, "Oy, captain, when is breakfast getting here?" he complained. Perhaps stuffing his face with some delicious curry would put him in a better mood.

"Yeah! We've been waiting for too long!" Tororo grumbled aloud, voicing his displeasure with the room service. If it hadn't been for their orders not to leave the dormitory the young tadpole would have scurried off to the nearest cafeteria the first chance he got, he was starving!

"It should be here soon," the lieutenant replied, tone calm and casual. "Though I'm starting to wonder…" he then muttered.

Although he as well was a little hungry, Lieutenant Garuru had gotten used to fasting every now and then when he wasn't in a hurry to eat first thing in the morning, and yet he wondered what was taking the room service so long to deliver their meal. Wishing to speed things up a bit he picked up the remote from the tabletop where he had left it, and then pressed a few buttons to contact the room service.

It was odd, he thought, when there was no one on the other end to pick up the call. Perhaps they were away or too busy? Or were they occupied with something else?

"Dang, your body is as stiff as stone, Corporal! It feels more like I'm running my fingers through a sand garden full of pebbles rather than flesh!" Shupepe grumbled as he dug his fingers into the hardened shoulder blades, ignoring the wince and hiss of pain from the red soldier, "When was the last time you got yourself a massage? You'd need one hell of a good, long, hot soak just to soften these and even that will require more than just one session." The medic muttered in a very displeased tone, baffled how anyone could function with such a knotted body.

"Hell! I'm surprised you're able to function at all with how tight and tense your spine is." He admonished and sank his fingers into a certain spot, receiving a loud pop of stiff joints becoming unknotted, "If you had pushed yourself too hard you could have pulled something and it would have been very nasty." He chided and pressed his hands harder against the back, trailing down the tender knotted spots that he knew were going to hurt very much once he popped them open.

"Ow! Hey! Watch it! Not so hard!" Giroro argued, wanting to move away, "Stop it!" he demanded.

Alas, he was prevented from escaping his captivity, "This requires a thorough session," Shupepe admonished and shoved the startled Keronian forwards, "On your stomach!" he demanded, and then grabbed the stubborn red invader by the earflap then straddled his lower back

Giroro tried to object in utter embarrassment to that order and their position, he wanted to argue how the other needn't be so aggressive, but the doctor was not giving him leeway or the chance to get out of this, not after seeing how high strung and stressed that body had been reduced to. Instead, the Chief Medic grabbed the Corporal by the shoulders and forced him down against the floor and showing just how physically fit he was, he was not letting this patient go without a fight!

Giroro gave a shout of agony as horrible pain shot up his spine, and then tried to push away if only to punch the Medic in the face and tell him to get off his person. Alas, he should have known better than to argue with any relative of Kururu, because Chief Medic Shupepe wasted no time shoving his pointy fingers alongside the tender parts of Giroro's shoulders, neck and back, hitting all the vital points and rendering him too sore and aching to move.

Kururu, from where he slouched in the bed like a sloth on a tree branch, could only offer his hapless senior a massive and cheeky grin. Shupepe was entertaining him with quite the delicious show of sheer male dominance, and if Giroro abandoned his pride and cried for help the yellow Keronian had no intention of lending a hand.

While the Sergeant Major enjoyed the display of the Medic tormenting the Corporal with ample amounts of physical pain, Giroro's cries of anguish with the loud cracking and popping of stiff joints could still be heard, showing just how much the red invader had neglected taking better care of his physical state despite his best efforts.

Taruru, Tororo and even Garuru would twitch, flinch and wince every few seconds with the distressed Corporal's tormented shouts, yelps and whimpers.

It was a good half hour later that Giroro had no more energy to thrash or flail in a poor attempt of escaping his doctor, managing only small grunts and groans whenever those prickly fingers pulled, kneaded and worked his aching spine in every other direction where it hurt the most.

Giroro was so in pain he didn't even have the energy to whimper, everything from the back of his neck and across the broad shoulders, and all the way down to the small of his back was tingling like the cold and merciless pinpricks of a thousand frosted needle across every inch of skin. Even well after Shupepe had announced that he was done, exclaiming how this activity felt more like tearing down a brick wall, the red soldier was much too sore and tender to move.

Every time he tried it only served to refresh the pain and make it worse.

It was no more than a minute later that room service finally arrived with their meal, and Tororo wasted no time to jump up and try to hog as much food to himself as possible.

Meanwhile, Giroro buried his face in his arms and groaned, wanting to give himself a moment of peace before refreshing the agony throbbing through his entire being, and perhaps push against himself to get up and off the floor. He couldn't lay there forever and needed to get up sooner or later.

Minutes passed and the others gathered around their meal, leaving the exhausted soldier where he was. It was about five minutes later that Giroro felt something being draped over his legs and lower body, then followed by the sensation of pointy fingers on his hot skin as they found their way to his aching body again, only this time the person straddling his lower back felt a little lighter, and the motion of those palms against his flesh felt less aggressive. The hands were flat against his shoulder blades and worked on massaging and stroking the tender ache away.

Giroro scowled and growled, he tried to voice a complaint how he couldn't take any more of this, but his voice refused to utter anything understandable. His eyes were bleary with the exhaustion and his head was throbbing with a headache, he was much too drained to fight back this time around.

Although, this time there was almost something very pleasing about it, Giroro allowed himself a low groan and unfolded his arms, eyes closed he started breathing through he nose if only to keep himself awake. The hands working on his back were starting to lull him, making him feel very tired and sleepy. His eyelids grew heavier and his mind blanked, the way those thumbs kneaded circles into his spine was very nice and it served to dull the pain.

Unaware was the Corporal however, as the one giving him the tender treatment was no longer Chief Medic Shupepe, but instead it was his own brother.

Lieutenant Garuru wanted to see- or rather feel, just how far off Giroro had neglected his physical health and was a little distraught at feeling so many lumps in his brothers back. The purple Keronian could now understand Pururu's constant worry, Giroro needed more time off to relax than he realized.

Perhaps after a nap his little brother could enjoy a meal. After all he couldn't go to the health examination tired and sore so a trip to the bathhouse for a good, long hot soak was required. It would also serve Garuru to get to see this mismatched group together to see just how compatible they were in working with one another.

With enough time on their side, they ought to be ready to depart to their destination by tomorrow, with Giroro's current state it didn't look like he was fit to go anywhere.


	9. Forgotten Tales

**. o 0 Chapter Nine 0 o **.

The calm before the storm; that is what is usually said when things are quiet before a catastrophe hits.

Sometimes the silence lasts for too short a time, not giving people time to register nor react to the events that play out. Other times the calm lasts too long giving the individuals involved the false sense of security, and then striking when they least expect it causing the tremors to be far more disastrous than they had anticipated.

And sometimes there is no storm after the calm, as the inkling feeling of approaching danger is only fueled by paranoia, or perhaps more so a foreshadowing for something much farther into ones future than an actual current threat.

Giroro hated being paranoid. It would serve to do nothing but make him agitated and twist his nerves into knots. The longer he remained paranoid the more it would become difficult to let go and relax, alas he had no idea what he was being paranoid over which only served to aggravate him further. Often times the bottled dread and uncertainty would rile him up and make him more jumpy and twitchy than usual, perhaps to the point of becoming trigger-happy if he was on the edge.

Of course seeing he was in the bathhouse no weapons were available, which only served to make him feel more defenseless and anxious, as well as less likely to shoot the others in a moment of lost control. Nevertheless, he would find himself straining his senses in hope to detecting possible dangers that may or may not even be lurking about. Ever the careful one he was just unable to get his mind off things that bothered him or caused him great amounts of worry.

It had been a good three hours after breakfast and the group of selected invaders been ushered out of their dorm, because the cleaning service needed time to tidy things up for them and to have the technical support look into the malfunctioned computer. Having nothing to do but try to relax in order to attend their health examination in a neutral state, with their bellies full and nothing on schedule to do, the mismatched team of space frogs agreed on going to the elite floor's spa room and bathhouse.

Or rather, they were voted five out of six as Giroro had no intention of spending any amount of time in a hot-humid room with Kururu or his pale blue brother. His body still ached all over from the aggressive kneading, and he knew soaking in a hot bath will only agonize him further, and yet there was nothing else to do to make the pain go away. No pain, no gain.

Outvoted and forced out of the room by his team and room service, the Corporal was pretty much dragged out despite his will.

It had taken them a bit to acquire towels and such items from the reception desk outside the bathhouse, and then with the use of their identity cards they were guided and allowed entrance, save for Taruru who had been rejected at first for not being a part of the permitted team. Thanks to Garuru's persuasion however, the First Class Private was allowed to join them for the spa gathering, but as soon as they were all done and ready to leave the young Keronian will be escorted to the lower floor by an awaiting guard as his presence was no longer required.

Garuru wanted to ask about the whereabouts of Lance Corporal Zoruru, but then chose not to bring it up. With the off chance that the gray Keronian had not been caught by the guards and was still gathering information, it was best not to make his absence known and try and cover up for him as much as possible.

Chief Medic Pururu and Recruit Rinono had been confirmed to have been at the bathhouse an hour prior, so the ladies have already freshened up for the day and had other matters to attend to, thus will be available whenever the men were prepared to their examination, much to Shupepe's dismay and Kururu's amusement.

While Recruit Tororo seemed to enjoy the little time off from the small dorm to soak in the hot waters, the young tadpole was also a bit aggravated at being in such close proximity to his supposed-rival.

Sergeant Major Kururu had spent most of his time pestering the younger tadpole and once went as far as yanking the delicate tail, causing Tororo much physical grief and agony, as well as flaring his temper in aggressive annoyance. Tororo did not take too well to the physical harassment and at first would reply in turn by punching, kicking or jabbing a fist or hand into the yellow one's gut, which satisfied his anger when Kururu gave a surprised 'Oomph!' at the stomach-jab.

Although Kururu was by no means physically fit for battle, that did not stop him from being more powerful than Tororo when they'd wrestle with their hands, or deliver a swift kick to each others shins. Their fight was childish at best, pinching and yanking at each others cheeks when getting toe-to-toe afterwards.

Frustrated at the childish display, Garuru and Giroro wrestled the two apart and the captain ordered them to stay clear away from each other. Giroro admonished the Sergeant Major for even starting such a ridicules display; he should act his age!

With irritation from Tororo and perhaps a gleeful grin from Kururu, the two masterminds agreed to keep away from one another. Giroro was a bit annoyed Shupepe made no attempt to approach or deal with his brother, whereas Taruru hurried to comfort his teammate with idle chatter and hushed excitement how if the captain hadn't gotten in the way, Tororo was totally winning that fight!

It was some time later that the group scattered across the bath to tend to their selves and to try and loosen up.

Giroro and Garuru took comfort to one side of the room close to the wall; where Giroro preferred to lounge next to the tub and enjoy the hot steam, Garuru stepped into the water to soak his weary bones with a low and satisfied sigh. Kururu seemed to vanish behind one of the low walls with a bucket, soap and towel. Shupepe and Taruru chose to soak into the waters as well, while Tororo settled at the side of the tub with his feet in the water and a frown on his face, all the while rambling and mumbling how he would like nothing more than to punch the yellow Keronian in the face.

Shupepe made no attempt to comfort or talk to the cranky youth, the pale blue Keronian smiled and did not comment.

The red invader sat on a low stool and was massaging his sore and tender body, he leaned back against the side of the tub with his arms folded onto the edge, his towel now placed over his shoulders like a scarf as he was too tense to focus on what he was doing anymore. The red and purple brothers had their earflaps rolled up, and their belts placed in a basket right next to them where they were under their watchful eyes and within reach.

Giroro did not like the thought of his belt not being there, it left him feeling exposed, vulnerable and naked in ways that made him far too uncomfortable to put into words. Garuru, on the other hand seemed to deal with the lack of his leather strap just fine; or was his brother so well in control of his feelings that he hid his anxiety better? Giroro had no idea…

He watched his purple brother soak, eyes closed and expression calm and relaxed. What would he do to be as half as great as his brother; someone his family would even be proud of…

Giroro wondered how Garuru was ever able to keep such a passive exterior when everything around him was irritating and loud. The younger brother was frustrated at a lot of things, but there was no explanation for it other than paranoia which only served to make him more anxious.

Distracted from his thoughts, Corporal Giroro glanced to the side and towards the pair of yellow legs that stood besides him. Kururu had his usual grinning face with one hand to his lips and a low chuckle followed. Giroro pushed back his annoyance and was just about the ask the other what he wanted, or where he had run off to for that matter, and that was when the Sergeant Major pulled something from the plastic bag he was holding in his other hand, and the confused invader stared as he was being offered something.

It was one of those long and thick popsicles, and due to the steamy heat of the bathhouse it was already starting to melt.

Giroro sighed then frowned a bit at the other, "You do realize they disallow food in here for a reason, right?"

"Ice Cream, shaved ice, and non-fizz soft drinks are allowed, so as long as no one starts a food fight." Kururu replied, grinning he offered the popsicle again, "They were fresh out of ice cream cups so you'll just have to deal with having this instead; wasn't sure what flavor you wanted to I picked something tangy, kuku…"

Reluctant and perhaps suspicious of the other's odd generosity yet not seeing the harm in accepting the offer, the Corporal took the frozen treat with a small, hushed and slightly flustered thank you. Kururu seemed to tense when their fingers touched, neither of them reacted upon it after a moment so the yellow Keronian raised a hand to his mouth again and chuckled, took a step backwards and then gave the Corporal an odd look, before turning around.

Giroro watched his superior's grin widen as he walked away. Kururu then took out a carton of juice before throwing the now empty bag into the trash bin. Looking at the others, Giroro noted that Shupepe had a juice carton as well, while Tororo and Taruru were enjoying ice cream. Or Taruru was at least, Tororo seemed quite suspicious of the treat, not that the red soldier could blame him.

Giroro leaned back against the side of the massive bath pool once more and watched the others for a moment longer, then turned his attention towards his brother. Garuru was next to him soaking in the hot waters with a juice carton set aside, unopened. Had the Corporal been so distracted that he hadn't seen Kururu walk around offering the others treats and drinks? Goodness, he must have really zoned out, it was not a very comforting thought at all.

If he had been so paranoid that he had lost connection with his surroundings, then perhaps this paranoia was only serving to make things worse rather than better; he had to get himself out of this funk before something terrible happens. The red invader palmed his face with a weary sigh and then rubbed his brow. The subtle headache was not painful yet was still making it hard to think, and the level of heat and humidity filling the room was making it hard to stay focused as well. He needed to cool off somehow…

That is when he opened his eyes and stared at the treat in his hand with a rather unsure expression, he wondered if Kururu was aware of his discomfort and had brought this to help him, or was it just dumb luck playing this scenario the way it did? The hard-boiled soldier then decided he could go with a small sugar boost that may or may not help keep his mind off things.

Sitting on the little stool Giroro leaned back a bit more with one arm on the edge of the tub and started to relax.

The Corporal stared at the popsicle for a moment longer, before unwrapping the transparent plastic off and then bringing it closer to his mouth. He gave it a small lick to scoop up the parts that was melting and a mixture of citrus flavors met his senses making his mouth flood with saliva. The taste was indeed tangy with the most obvious flavor of sweet-orange and crisp-lemon, and for the lack of better words it was quite refreshing.

The red Keronian stared at the opposite wall, thinking back at the odd display coming from his usually mean-spirited and nasty Sergeant Major.

Was Kururu planning something, or was he just aiming for something beyond the Corporal's understanding? Was he being too paranoid and jumpy? It was unlike the yellow invader to hand out treats, not ones that were not spiked with curry at the very least, and though Giroro somehow found that he had no suspicion at the treat itself, it was Kururu's person that boggled him.

For a while no one else mattered, everyone was shoved out of his mind as the conversation he had shared with the yellow one the earlier night came to mind. Kururu had asked him not to trust him, that if he got too close then things might get troublesome. What did the yellow Keronian mean by that?

Had their surroundings and environment been tampered with? Kururu was a mastermind and could rig the whole floor if he wanted and none of them would be aware of it. With a slight subtle shake of the head to toss out the negative thoughts, Giroro felt that the floor or the food were not the issue, the problem he had was the idea of Kururu being nice that bothered him.

Then again they were surrounded by those Kururu considered strangers, so perhaps the Sergeant Major did not want the others to get a bad impression? That was absurd. Kururu had made it clear to his platoon that he did not care what others thought of him, that he would embrace being a mean-spirited and vile invader because he found being nice disgusting, so perhaps it was something bigger than this, something far more serious?

Did it have anything to do with this Koii woman that would be leading them on their mission?

While his mind wandered away into a whole different wavelength, Giroro's mouth was all the while occupied with the popsicle and working on automatic.

His Keronian tongue, being longer and more flexible than Pekoponian tongues, not to mention far more versatile and easier to move and control, worked on making sure to lick up the melting treat to prevent it from dripping onto his person, if only for the sake of not getting any sticky sweet on his skin, while his teeth would nip and bite on the frosted drink enough to keep it steady, but not enough to break it. Pearly white fangs showed bright from under those lips against the glossy form of the popsicle, and the tongue swirled and wrapped around it with ease.

Meanwhile, a fair few feet away at the other side of the room, Chief Medic Shupepe was giving Taruru and Tororo basic lessons in acupuncture and massaging, explaining how stiff muscles and taking little to no care of their bodies as well as wearing themselves with too much work, will only put them in as much agony as the Corporal had.

Disinterested in topics he already knew, Sergeant Major Kururu was sipping from the juice carton when he glanced at the red invader in mention. The hard-boiled soldier had half the popsicle shoved into his mouth with his teeth bared and tongue rolling over the sides, licking up and sucking the juice that dribbled down the sides of the treat and the corner of his mouth.

Suffice to say, the world around the yellow invader felt as if it had been stopped frozen solid for an eternity with an ice-age bang at the image playing before him. It was only at the sudden pulse that struck the pit of his stomach, sending a jolt of cold electric fire up his spine that Kururu reacted.

He had no idea what happened when the juice he was drinking shot out of his nostrils, almost bursting out of his headphone covered ears as well, but when he registered the action of it happening it was also accompanied with the cold-hot sting throughout his nose and throat.

After much coughing and hacking to get the drink out of his lungs, the Sergeant Major felt his breath hitch with the feeling of bubbles in his throat and a daze spinning his mind. The yellow invader didn't need more than a few seconds afterwards to realize what had caused such a thing to happen. His face and body warmed up in an instant at the thought of the very arousing imagery that popped into his vision, and the fact the Corporal continued to be oblivious to the stimuli only made it worse.

Kururu was glad it was juice and not blood, or else it would have made this little accident less innocent and his thoughts more obvious.

When Shupepe appeared out of nowhere to pat his back and help him compose himself, offering a towel to wipe his face, Kururu looked away and hid his face by washing the spittle and juice. The Sergeant Major was embarrassed beyond words at the violent reaction, and it transformed into spite at Tororo's audible snickering. The yellow invader chose to get back at the little twerp later on, for now he needed to keep his heart from bursting out of his chest, as well as prevent other parts of him from popping out of their hiding, and to get that burning hot image out of his mind.

He had meant to give the popsicle to the Corporal just to mess with him as he expected the other to see right through his ploy and reject it, but when Giroro accepted without a hint of doubt the Sergeant Major tried to hide his giddiness and play cool. Though he liked to mess with the red invader on occasion, the yellow Keronian would admit to himself that he never would have thought the other would look as hot as he had with that frozen treat shoved into that mouth.

Frankly, he never thought he would react in such a manner, either. Kururu would also admit he was a little terrified since he never thought such a thing would tackle him unaware, not at such a degree. The dull ache throbbing through the veins at the pit of his stomach only served to make the tingly sensation and the heat scorching his face much worse.

While Shupepe had a pretty good idea what his brother was suffering, he glanced at the other two Keronians sharing the room with them and found that, while Corporal Giroro seemed detached from his surroundings and had missed the mishap altogether, Lieutenant Garuru had leaned back against the side of the tub and was watching them with a mild, somewhat humored smile. The pale blue Keronian said nothing, he offered a weary chuckle and a shrug to the other, and the purple invader replied with a subtle nod.

A moment later Garuru glanced at Giroro who seemed very much lost in thought, to the point that he had stopped eating the popsicle. The red Keronian had pulled it out of his mouth and lowered it to just somewhat kiss-suck on the tip. Giroro was staring at a certain invisible spot at the opposite wall that only he seemed to be able to see; his eyes fogged and unfocused.

Garuru, thinking his brother needed to get his mind off things that did not matter, pushed off the side of the pool and with precision shoved a large splash of water to hit his brother at the back of the head. Surprised and shocked by the warm waters hitting his tender skin, Giroro yelped and dropped the treat to the floor, blinked in confusion and then coughed as a bit of the water got to his nose, he twirled around with an aggravated sneer at his older sibling.

Garuru flashed a mischievous fanged grin and hit his younger brother's face with another large splash of water. Giroro sputtered and coughed, shook the water off his face and with a flash mischief twinkling in those deep, navy blue eyes, the Corporal wasted no time getting to his feet and leaping right at the other with a battle cry.

Everyone stared, more so surprised than anything they watched in awe at the display of… male dominance? Brotherly shenanigans? Playful roughhousing? None of them knew, though most of it was directed in shock at their ever so stoic purple leader's laughter and his younger brother's splashing than anything else.

What had started off as Garuru being an imp and Giroro tackling him for it, turned into the two wrestling in the water with suppressed laughter and attempts of restraining one another, there was a lot of splashing and flailing going about which made it a little difficult for the others to make out just what was happening. If it hadn't been for the difference in skin color none of them would have been able to tell which from which.

Kururu could tell that though Giroro was the younger of the two he was far more physically fit than the captain; Garuru seemed to be doing his damned best to flee from Giroro's reach, dodging and trying to remain behind the younger sibling whose rage transformed into slight amused annoyance.

Then there was a loud, surprised cry from Garuru who had somehow been overpowered and pulled underwater, Giroro had caught his brother by the leg and the two submerged. With much bubbles and splashing erupting from where the two had vanished, the others remained at the edge of their seat, tense they watched the bantering come to an end and the surface of the water settled into an odd sense of calm.

Some moments passed and the two siblings did not emerge from under the water.

Kururu swallowed and resisted the urge to plunk his face into the water to see what was going on.

He didn't need to. A minute later Garuru appeared victorious as he stood upright with one foot at the side of the pool, he stepped out of the water with Giroro hauled over his shoulder coughing and hacking, wheezing and a little breathless.

The red invader started laughing as soon as he was able to control his breath again. "Damn it, bro! That's cheating!" he howled in laughter and smacked the purple Keronian on the back of the head, enough to show his displeasure but not enough to hurt him, then started wriggling his legs in an attempt to squirm off his brother's shoulder, "Put me down, dang it, we're too old for this!" he muttered, flustered, and a bit more hushed.

Garuru chuckled and carried his younger brother out of the water to eased him down on his feet to solid floor, giving the red one a moment to balance himself before he spoke, "I'll admit, you almost had me back there if it hadn't been for that soap bar," he laughed.

Before Giroro could even reply, Sergeant Major Kururu decided ha had had enough and wanted to interrupt the conversation at his own accord for the sake of getting the energy out of his system. He tackled the red soldier from behind while daring to be bold he grabbed the red one by the rear end and shoving their bodies into the water. As the red and yellow Keronians were being flung towards the pool, a loud shout of surprise erupted from a very embarrassed Giroro and high pitched laughter from a naughty Kururu.

Where Garuru blinked in startled confusion, Tororo and Taruru were more confused at all the unraveling of strange events happening throughout the past hour.

Shupepe, however, palmed his face and buried it in his hands with a low groan; his brother just had to go and do that, didn't he. Shupepe was not at all sympathetic to the loud venomous howling of Giroro and the laughter from his yellow brother; he could tell from a mile away his younger sibling had an unhealthy affinity at the red soldier, yet he did not think it stemmed deep to the point that he would physically assault the other just to cope a feel.

He was going to have to have a word with Kururu during their therapy session, this act is unacceptable of someone his age and rank, and could get the yellow Sergeant Major in trouble if word got out. Lady luck be with him; Rinono will chew those headphones off if she got wind of this as well. Having feelings for someone of the same or opposite gender was one thing, but going as far as physically assaulting them was a different topic!

As soon as the red and yellow ones broke the surface of the water again with gasps for air and chortles of laughter, Giroro, flustered and affronted at being groped had no qualms about gifting Kururu with a solid punch and sending him to slide across the water to crash against the wall smack-dub between Taruru and Tororo's location. The hit was enough to make his ear ring and his eyes spin, and if possible leave a well deserved bruise to remember him by.

The angry Corporal had no trouble trudging through the water to strangle the yellow pervert a proper thrashing as well, alas being a no-good player Kururu had no issues grabbing Tororo and pulling him over his head then throwing the screaming little body at the red Keronian. Taruru was also caught and thrown in a similar manner at the red soldier who staggered back to try and avoid getting hit, but due to his unbalanced state due to not having his belt, he slipped backwards and right into the water before he was pummeled with two bodies dropping right on top of him at full force, knocking the breath right out of him.

Of course, with that play of events it had given Kururu the chance to tackle them into the water for a battle- royal.

Instead of attempting to separate them Lieutenant Garuru walked towards the pale blue Medic, sat down next to him and the two watched the younger group fight and tussle in the water. The two elder soldiers shared an awkward silence with wary smiles, Garuru and Shupepe could tell the other had their hands full with their crew and family, so there was nothing to worry about since the four bickering and splashing weren't going to hurt each other; not too much at least.

Giroro's aggressiveness and Kururu's desire of pain were never a good combination, but it really could not be helped; let those two handle it their own way.

Where Taruru tried to be the peacekeeper and separate the quarreling sides, and maybe not get dragged into the fight as well, Tororo tried to escape and thought it was a good idea to duck behind the Corporal. The tadpole's attempt to use Giroro as a meat-shield only served to make Kururu far more gleeful and tackled both, causing Giroro's massive weight to come crashing down onto the smaller tadpole and trapping him underwater. The yellow invader threw himself against the two red colored Keronian finding a nice perch on the Corporal's lap, wrapping his arms around the shoulders and pressing their cheeks to one another in a near affectionate cuddle.

But the niceness was all for show; Sergeant Major Kururu reached around the Corporal to grab Tororo's tail and give it a good yank, causing the trapped young one to release a string of bubbles at the assault, while reaching with his other hand to take a handful of the offended invader's rump and giving it a good squeeze, making the red one yelp in surprise. Giroro's face shifted through ten shades of red before it settled into a bright, almost glowing pink hue.

No more than two seconds later the yellow creeper was flung across the room with a solid kick.

Kururu, after he had collided with the opposite wall and then hit the floor due to the laws of gravity, with a weary string of his namesake in laughter twitched once, twice, and then slumped down on the clean marble flooring, while Taruru and also Shupepe tried their best to restrain and coax the Corporal from outright killing the yellow one.

Kururu, as his upside vision started getting bleary from the daze he had received with that wallop, always a glutton for punishment thrived off agitating the Corporal and making him flip a lid, he could never understand why seeing Giroro angry was his guilty pleasure, and yet he never bothered to stop and ask himself why, he continued to do so for the sake of entertainment.

Or at least, that's what he kept telling himself because he didn't want to think of it being anything more.

He just liked to mess around; end of story, there was nothing else to it… right?

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Kururu rolled over the bed from his back to his belly with a low grunt and groan.

His body was aching all over from the sever beating he received from the embarrassed and humiliated, not to mention very angry Corporal. The Sergeant Major had no regrets whatsoever! That beating was so well worth every moment. He had wanted to get a good feel of that glorious and cushy backside for _ages_, and he was most satisfied with what he had found; it was indeed a far more delightful discovery than he had hoped despite the pain it caused.

Although it had been a good two hours since the incident Corporal Giroro was still very, _very_ angry.

The red invader kept to himself within the safe sanctuary of his bunk bed and shielded by he curtains, that did nothing to prevent his low grumbling and growled rambling from the yellow one's keen ears. Giroro was very embarrassed at being molested and could not show face to the others, he felt so uncomfortable and bothered in his own skin after being touched in such a way, all he ever wanted was to murder the yellow one for being a damned pervert.

Alas the low snarling and constant beating delivered onto the pillow, causing low creaky noises to emit off the bed at the aggressiveness, only served to entertain the sore and achy yellow one further, bringing the smile back to his face and stretching the grin wider.

Too bad it hurt too much to laugh or Kururu would have deafened everyone's ears with his gleeful chortles.

After Kururu had been subdued after much deserved pounding of red, angry fists, the group deemed playtime over and were encouraged to gather their things, dry up and head back to the dormitory. Of course by doing so Taruru, much to his dismay, was not allowed to go back with them and had been escorted elsewhere.

Corporal Giroro and Sergeant Major Kururu were now in their separate beds, while Recruit Tororo was able to log into the repaired computer at last, only to find that everything on it had been wiped clean and nothing was left other than the basic operating system. Annoyed but willing to start from scratch the salmon-red tadpole started working away on the machine, setting basic commands and ensuring security in order to build up some programs to work with.

Tororo was so absorbed into what he was doing he had forgotten he was not alone, and did not pay any attention to the swirly-disk glasses reading up and processing everything he was doing as it if was being typed in slow motion. Meanwhile, lieutenant Garuru settled on the ground next to his younger brother's massive rucksack and was meditating, taking the chance of the peace and quiet to clear his mind and keep himself in a positive and collected mood.

Chief Medic Shupepe had been called away moments before by a guard in order to meet up with Recruit Rinono and Chief Medic Pururu, he was asked to aid the ladies with their task in the infirmary which he was more than happy to.

None of them paid much attention to the passing of time, not until Giroro decided he had enough with wasting his time in hiding, though reluctant he pulled away at the curtains and stepped down the ladder, not looking at anyone in particular he made his way to the restroom. Kururu watched the hard boiled soldier walk past him in silence, while Garuru never broke out of his meditative state, nor did Tororo turn from his shiny computer screen.

Minutes passed and Giroro reemerged looking less flustered and more in control, though still reluctant. He made his way to his rucksack and undid the top to reach inside, wanting a gun to polish and keep himself distracted until ordered otherwise. Corporal Giroro had gotten anxious to start the mission already, the longer they were left to idle and waste time the more tense he'd get and the more likely Kururu would find openings to torment him.

Just as Giroro was about to pull out a gun, a gentle purple hand landed on his shoulder, without words spoken the brothers looked at one another and the red one looked displeased, nevertheless Giroro complied to the unspoken request and shoved the weapon back into the rucksack, strapped the belts back on and sat down next to his kin, body not as achy as before but mind not as clearheaded as he wanted it to be, either.

Giroro leaned back against his large traveling backpack and hugged his knees, looking just a little peeved at all that had happened. All the while he did not need to turn his gaze to the side since he knew Kururu was looking at him, and he did not want to satisfy the other by showing his displeasure. Instead, much to his surprise, Garuru leaned back against the backpack as well and leaned closer enough for their shoulders to touch, and again the brothers shared a bond and did not need to speak, finding comfort in each others presence.

Kururu watched as Giroro's flustered and nervous posture relaxed over the course of minutes, dwindling from tight and uncomfortable into calm. The Sergeant Major would admit it was a very rare sight to see the red one so at peace without an obvious cause, it almost made the yellow one want to go over there and plop himself between them just to ruin the moment.

But distracting them from the happenings, there was a low scratching sound coming from the other side of the dorm's doorway, soon followed by low whimpering noises of sorts that caught everyone's attention, including Tororo. The salmon-red tadpole was the first to abandon his perch and hurry to get the door, curious to what the odd yet familiar sounds were and having a good idea what they would belong to.

However, neither he nor the ones in the room were ever prepared for the small horde of black creatures rushing into the room with yips and barks as soon as the doors were opened. Tororo gave a loud surprised cry when a small army of what looked like puppies rushed past him, knocking him onto his tail with a thump and yelp, and then to look up only to be met with the massive maw of a space Doberman coming towards his face.

The large, wet and slimy tongue met his face with a squish as the adult space dog left trails of saliva all over the young one's face, licking him in greeting. Tororo's terrified screams soon transformed into tickled laughter at the display of affection; the young one struggled a bit to try and gather his bearings.

Where Kururu sat up in confusion at the sudden arrival of house pets in their dorm, Garuru and Giroro got to their feet at first in surprise and hurried to try and gather the puppies that were running amok across their room, making a mess in their wake. Kururu's keen eyes could tell there were six puppies in total chasing what looked like a terrified black cat of sorts, and the large one smothering Tororo with kisses was the mom; her general physical build was a clear definition of her gender.

Suddenly, someone shouted, "Butt Firecracker!"

While Tororo missed the shout due to being smothered by a happy mother, Garuru flinched back when Giroro screeched and flailed away with his hands on his rear, his little brother trembled in terrified horror and his face had gotten quite pale. The lieutenant then turned to the Sergeant Major and found that Kururu had been so surprised with that sudden shout at well, he had thunked his head against the bunk bed above him, crowning his head with a lump and denting the metal while he was at it, while he as well was protecting his yellow rear end for some unexplainable reason.

"Butt Firecracker! Stop! Come over here!" the voice of a young aqua-green Keronian shot again, and the purple lieutenant turned to the still opened doorway; it was a moment later that the skittering and racing puppies all started chasing after one black creature that he realized looked like a space feline, and the cat wasted no time leaping towards the young boy with the propeller helmet and ducked into the white shoulder bag he was carrying.

"Goddamn it, Nobibi! Stop scaring us like that!" Giroro screeched, his voice somewhat shrilled with the strain of being frightened out of his wits, skin coated with a light sheen of cold sweat.

At first the little aqua-green invader was confused at being called out by name, then after a minute turned to the red invader in puzzlement. His jaw slacked and his eyes widened when he recognized the Corporal's presence, "AH! It's _you!_ What are you doing here!" he shouted while pointing at the red invader.

"We could be asking you the same question, ku…" Kururu muttered and rubbed the aching lump on his skull. The Sergeant Major wasted no time getting off the bed and ducking into the bunk bed above to avoid the pups that tried to tackle his lap.

Garuru stared at the puppies yipping and barking at the large bag the aqua green youth lifted over his head and away from the puppies reach, and then at his brother, "I take it you three know each other?" he inquired. The lieutenant could not help but feel a little out of place regarding the whole siltation.

"It's a long story…" Giroro smiled, awkward and not wanting to explain anything at all.

Tororo managed to push to his feet and huffed, a little flustered. He had no issues with being coddled by a big Doberman mama, but he had showered just a few hours ago and did not feel like having another bath, but it seemed like he had to if he wanted to get all the dog drool off his person. Upon noticing the other green tadpole and the slew of puppies running circles around him, the salmon red hacker wondered what he missed.

Whatever it was, he hoped it wouldn't make things any more a mess than they already were; the room service will blow their top when they see the room now!

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

"I see, so your father is a member of Bobaba industries and was the one enlisted to fund supplies?" Giroro muttered, surmising what Nobibi explained in short then grumbled at the fur balls of black sprawled and sleeping in the room, "That doesn't explain why these are here," he gestured at the puppies.

The pitch-black cat with four white eyes and bright pink nose perched on the Corporal's head gave a pleased 'shyaa!' instead of a mew, remaining in its feline form and never reverting to the form of the pink alien blob, while a sleepy space Doberman puppy nestled in the red soldier's arms.

Giroro looked at the pups who had claimed their dorm's floor as their new playground and his lap for a bed, well aware such a mess will not go well with the cleaning lady.

"Sorry about the mess, I was helping these others with their pets and we got separated," Nobibi rubbed the back of his neck, guilty and sheepish, "My father wont be too pleased when he finds out about this mess, but I guess it cant be helped; it wasn't my fault Karara cant get her damn priorities straight…" he grumbled.

"Karara?" Giroro croaked, too familiar with the name to forget who it was, "Wait, you mean Bobaba's daughter?"

"I knew something about this whole mess smelled, kuku…" Kururu chuckled.

Giroro shot an annoyed scowl at the swirly-disk glasses peering down at them from above. Kururu grinned down at the others who occupied the bunk bed below him, from where he kept a safe perch in the middle row of the beds, wanting to keep his distance from the hyperactive and over affectionate space mutts and their mama; that and to get comfortable in the Corporal's bed for the most innocent of reasons without being questioned while he had the chance.

Speaking of which, the mother space canine lay down for a bit of rest all comfy against Giroro's toppled-over rucksack, and on top of some pillows and blankets that had been yanked off the lower-bunk beds by excited puppies, earning some loose threads and shreds on the sides and corners. In the arch of her body were her puppies all cuddled up and sleeping, with one all snuggled up in Tororo's arms who had also nodding off to dreamland as well.

Garuru had attempted to pick the tadpole out of the blanket of pups and tuck him into proper bedding, but the mama space dog gave him the evil eye when he came too close. The lieutenant thought that it would be best to let her pamper the young Keronian and not get on her bad side; he could tell she had a soft spot for tadpoles even if she was not too familiar with them.

Nevertheless, the captain knew better than to make a mother angry. After all, he had met that side of Sergeant Keroro's mother multiple times when they were younger, and he knew better than to overstep his boundaries.

Garuru, who chose to remain standing, crossed his arms over his chest and addressed his brother, "Well since they're all down for a nap, I can go contact the reception desk to try and find these missing children; do you think you can keep an eye on them?"

Giroro looked reluctant, but nodded anyway, "I think I can handle it so as long as they stay sleeping." He replied.

"Good, I'll try to be quick, make surer they don't leave the room before I get here," Garuru added and made his way to the doorway, slow and careful as to not rouse any of the sleeping pups, or Tororo.

After the purple leader had left, the black cat lowered its body to perch on the Corporal's shoulder and then maneuver its body around his head to drape itself around his shoulders like a fur scarf, purring all the way as if it were an actual cat. The Corporal chuckled and shared a little nuzzle with the transforming creature, it reminded him of the cuddles he'd share with Ms. Fluffbottom and found that he rather missed the feeling.

Giroro was also glad to know it remained in a cat form while Garuru was still present. The last thing Giroro wanted was to explain the whole 'butt firecracker' thing to his sibling.

Looking at the mess left behind the Corporal wondered just how well things are going to go from this point onward. He didn't think things could get any worse, but also knew stating it out loud would only jinx it.

Alas, Giroro did not need to say any of his thoughts out loud, because no more than minutes later Shupepe arrived with a rather pleased and cheery look on his face, he was decked in a white doctor coat and carried a clipboard in his hand, but at coming into the room to see it in such a disheveled mess, then laying eyes on the new aqua green Keronian and the horde of animals asleep nearby, the pale blue doctor arched a questioning brow at the Corporal.

Giroro gave a heavy sigh and lowered his head in dejection.

Kururu's amused chuckles coming from overhead were not helping the situation any at all.


	10. Torn Down Sails

**. o 0 Chapter Ten 0 o .**

Responsibility.

A word that the young learn to fear and the old grow to resent.

Sergeant Major Kururu would sometimes wish he didn't have any obligations to be responsible for _anything_ whatsoever. Although he knew with his rank and expertise there was no possible way of skipping on what needed to be done when it was due time, that didn't mean he liked any of it.

Sure he was fast and nimble in ways others grow to envy, and whatever needed to be built would not be an issue since he could whip it up in seconds, he just did not _care_ about doing something for others unless there was some sort of merit he could get out of it.

It was far more aggravating in the past, though. Back when he was younger and needed to be taught the ropes and the tricks of the trade, he needed to pay constant and close attention to what was being described, what he was asked to create and how to have it done in the shortest time and with the best quality possible, and as such with certain things it was difficult to have leeway in doing what he wanted when he was under a tight schedule.

All work and no play made him a very cranky child; maturity notwithstanding.

Kururu did not like carrying the weight applied from high expectations of others; he loved making machines because he loved tinkering and it was his passion and greatest asset, yet others kept trying to make him step out of his pleasure zone and shape him the way they wanted, the way that served them best regardless of how he felt regarding the whole thing.

They were trying to box him and his imagination, curbing his affinity to explore, restricting his right to dream under tight rules and regulations that made no sense to him other than protecting their statue and rank, and exploiting his skills and abilities they best they could.

He had no intention of being anyone's tool, no matter who they were or how powerful they thought themselves to be.

If he did not do as they asked to because he wanted to, then he'd soon rather off himself!

That's when he decided he didn't give a damn to orders from those who outranked him and let things boil over. It was only after years of struggling with his superiors that dumb luck served him well. Sure getting demoted so long ago had given him some trouble, stamping his record with a dark mark that haunted him for a fair while afterwards, but still he kept going because that setback gave him something to look forward to.

Besides, a little smear was nothing to him and did not affect him at all; no skin off his back.

What was a fighter without a few scars? The dirty spots and ageless wounds of body and spirit were proof he had to fight for what he believed in, for what he wanted, and whether or not others agreed with him or not did not matter.

On the long run it was a much needed change, and he grew to appreciate it every morning.

The strenuous pressure of paperwork and the slew of mundane and brain-numbing projects that needed to be done had been cut short, perhaps a bit too short to the point that he found himself with more free time than he knew what to do with.

For a bit of a busybody, Kururu was a little uncomfortable with that, it was difficult to adjust to so suddenly. At first he enjoyed the free time and did whatever he wanted as much as he could, but of course all good things come to an end and he soon found that having nothing to do and no company to badger quite the bother.

So he requested to join a platoon. Not just any platoon, he requested a strong platoon worthy of his talent and skill and not some greenhorn rookies who had no clue what they were doing. He asked _not_ to be the leader, either; he wanted nothing to do with the responsibility of catering for a bunch of nimrods.

Of course being the mean-spirited and mischievous imp, the Sergeant Major was not quite the social person and did not fit in with varies selection of platoons on the first go.

It was after a few assembly attempts that his superiors began to question his comparability to join a group without starting a fight amongst the members, and be cooperative enough not to make things worse for those involved, or for the council who were trying to gain his approval. Kururu knew they considered him a prize and if push came to shove he could get them under his thumb with a bit of persuasion… but again, it was too much work and he couldn't be arsed to bother.

For a while, Kururu was content with mischief making, willing to bid his time and wait for the right selection of invaders who would accept him for who he was rather than try to shape him into the mold they expected.

That was until the Keroro Platoon was being formed and the name of Corporal Giroro caught his attention.

Kururu would sometimes think back on that day with a nostalgic grin. Had it really been a little over four years since they had gone to Pekopon, to spend so much time messing around and having fun, and how he got to spend every day with that hotheaded dope? My, what a long, strange trip it's been…

It would be kind of depressing if it all ended up in blood and tears, though.

Although he could be a responsible Keronian if he so chose, he was the type of person to really not be arsed to do _anything_ unless he really wanted to, or was motivated with enough reasons to do that. Or, if the situation and circumstances were fitting, found it entertaining in some shape or form and was willing to cooperate for the sake of the outcome.

Sometimes there didn't need to be a reward, getting or grating one someone's nerves would be more than enough to please him for hours, even if they were his own family.

And speaking of family, after Chief Medic Shupepe arrived to tell them it was time for their heath examination and therapy session, Giroro's disheartened and reluctant state after dealing with the space Doberman canines was enough a trigger for the yellow one to try and think of something to keep the mood light and playful.

If Giroro was not willing to go ahead with those sessions just yet, then neither was Kururu!

Kururu wasted no time drawing back behind the curtains, popping his headphones out and using the special amplifiers to create sounds that only the dogs could hear; or so he hoped. Shupepe and perhaps the Corporal could detect or sense the whistling since Shupepe wore headphones that could filter such sounds, and Giroro's ears were as keen as that of a dangerous dog of war. Though the red devil could not hear the whistle itself that did nothing to prevent him from knowing something was going on.

The supposed-silent whistle roused the canines from their sleep and plopped Tororo right out of the comfortable bedding, causing the groggy tadpole to grunt and snort as he was shocked awake. Shupepe was surprised and confused at the sudden onslaught of hyperactive pups jumping up and about like the gymnastics of a circus act, but at the amused chortles of his brother coming from the upper bunk bed he realized what had happened. The pale blue Keronian struggled to stay on his feet when the puppies continued to leap at him to paw at his clothes and yank on his coat, forcing him down and away from the others.

Nobibi hopped off the bed and tried to help keep the horde of canines behaved, but it was only a moment later that the door of the dorm opened when an elite guard arrived, only to get mauled by the small army of space Doberman pups who wasted no time racing out of the stuffy and restricting room. The soldier toppled back with a shout of surprise and hit the floor with a thump, then stared in sheer puzzlement as the excited animals darted out of the room, barking and yipping all the way.

Giroro did not understand why they were running off at first, only seconds later he realize Firecracker had gone missing and was no longer on his shoulder; the dogs were chasing the feline down the hallways again! Once acknowledging that, he and Nobibi ignored the baffled guard and hurried out of the room hoping to collect these wild house pets before they caused any more trouble.

Almost as if all the pain and agony Kururu had felt after the beating he took meant nothing, he wasted no time jumping off his perch and racing out of the room as well, wanting to get a good show and escape a possible thrashing by his brother.

Shupepe was not amused when he was left behind, confused and disheveled in a very dirtied room. In fact, the Medic was seething in bottled rage to the point his face turned into a light shade of strangled purple.

When his voice bellowed through the wards enough to make the furniture rattle, calling out his brother's name and demanding he come back right that instant, it only served to make the yellow imp laugh even harder. He was a rebel at heart and had no intention of following anyone's orders, not even his elder brother. The evil giggles of the Sergeant Major echoed and resonated throughout the wards, bouncing every which way he went.

Nevertheless, it had been a good handful of hours since then, and Corporal Giroro muttered under his breath how Kururu was going to get the beating of a lifetime as soon as he got his hands on him. The red warrior had gotten separated from the aqua green youngling somewhere during the chase.

It had taken him a lot of running around in order to cut the chase short and rescue Firecracker before the puppies got to him, and when he had the little rascals all scattered so they won't get packed back into the small room. The Corporal jumped at them in hope of catching them before they fled and only managed to grab two by the ankles. After a bit of calming down as they had gotten quite the scare at his attempt, the Corporal requested a bit of aid from the transforming blob of pink. Firecracker morphed into a leash and attached to the pup's collars, giving them space to move about but not get too out of reach for the cranky red Keronian.

Giroro gave a low aggravated sigh and then grumble. Looking at his surroundings it seems that he had gotten himself lost to boot!

Instead of being within the Elite floor he had somehow managed to puzzle his way through to the crisscrossed wards and trek his way to upper gardens. With Firecracker working as a leash for two energetic puppies, the irritated Corporal wondered why these shenanigans were being pulled at the worst times possible.

He'd swear, if he didn't know any better he'd say some powerful being out there was doing this just to torment him!

Needing to rest his weary legs and perhaps give the little whimpering baby-eyed mutts some time to play, Giroro plopped down on the mild slope that rested on either sides of the watering channel, and then heaved a heavy sigh, his hand clenched tight on the leash that kept them from running off again. The puppies soon crept closer and decided they wanted to cuddle, perhaps sensing that he was not in a very pleasant mood they curled on his lap. Being the softie that he was Giroro slipped a little chuckle and petted them, careful not to stab his fingers with their pointy head crowns.

With them subdued and pleased they coiled against one another, happy and content. Since a leash was no longer required or at least not for the time being, Firecracker unlocked itself from their collars and wrapped itself around the Corporal's neck, transforming into a hot-pink scarf. Giroro touched the scarf for a moment and twitched a wane smile, with Firecracker's happy 'shyaa!' he thanked him in a hushed tone and then glanced up at the blue sky above.

The gardening area was by no means safe, there were traps laid in every inch of it for moochers and hungry greedy grabbers. Giroro had experienced the dangers lurking within the bushes himself when he had first come to the Grand star ages ago.

Though in afterthought he had to wonder if that nice old lady was still there or not; if she was then her dog must have gotten bigger over the passing of time too, no?

A little too weary to think the red Keronian laid back and huffed to release some of the tension tightening his skull, making it hard to clear his mind. Firecracker, still wrapped around his neck remained still for a moment longer until the puppies began to stir. They got up and started nudging and nuzzling the Corporal's face as if asking if he was alright. The red invader chuckled and scratched one of them under the chin, while the other poked its snout into the scarf for a sniff.

Firecracker re-transformed into the pink blob for a second before it leaped onto the grass, made a loud and perhaps playful 'shyaa!' and then transformed into a Doberman puppy just like the others, only its eyes were a bright pink instead of amber gold-orange. Giroro had propped himself up to watch the three play and tackle one another, thinking it was safe to rest for a bit to gather his bearings. The grass was very lush and green and made for a wonderful mattress.

The Corporal closed his eyes and started thinking again. Calling the little pink alien 'Butt Firecracker' always made him feel weird so he would just have to settle with calling it Firecracker, since going around crying '_Butt_ Firecracker' would not really give a positive impression. What was Keiko thinking when she decided to call him that, anyway? He would have preferred if she had gone with that gibberish codex name she originally intended than this awkward name.

Deep, navy blue eyes fluttered open and stared at the holographic dome above, watching the clouds soar overhead and the soft breeze from the ventilation system swoosh by, caressing his skin with a soothing, cool touch.

He frowned, just a little. This, all of this, was so fabricated he found it difficult to adjust. As much as his surroundings and atmosphere were real, the sky alone was the fake part that bothered him the most. This sky and the wind that breezed by, they were nothing like the nourishing spring air on Pekopon, nor the homey and comforting embrace of Keron's star-cloud littered sky, and though it could be passed off as realistic the Corporal had been in the real world long enough to know a real sky from an artificial one.

He lay there with his hands to his sides and eyes closed. The pups scooted off to the side of the slope and closer to the water, and then started sniffing about for the transforming pink puddle that continued to elude them, hiding in the grass in ways that made the red soldier grin, he could see the little creatures were not yet daring to venture off too far. Firecracker seemed to like to mess and play with them so the three soon engrossed in a game of hide and seek.

The Corporal watched them play for a little longer and found it easier to relax, their playful banter somehow calmed his senses and kept his mind clear, his hands folded under his head and his ankles crossed, a hint of a fanged smile graced his lips while he enjoyed the short break.

Alas, the short break was cut even shorter when the footfalls of someone approaching because more and more audible. The Corporal did not to look up, much too absorbed into his pacified state to think otherwise. It was not until the hot breath of someone looking down at his face, and then the sticky wet tongue of the space Doberman mother slobbering him with kisses did he jump with a yelp and sputter, with a suppressed a screech of alarm he pushed up to wipe the drool from his face.

"Kukuku, you're not usually one to sleep on the job, senior," came the amused chuckle of the yellow imp of a frog riding on the broad back of the large hound, and then he continued with a cheeky leer, "Don't tell me those mutts tuckered you out already, old man?"

"Kururu! " Giroro began, somewhat surprised and confused, and perhaps a little annoyed at being found already, but before he could say anything he noted the small bright-green colored arms wrapped around the yellow Keronian's midsection, and then the large, baby blue eyes of a young female Keronian tadpole peered at him, "Karara!" the Corporal added, surprised to see the girl who was missing with none other than the yellow creeper.

The next moment, three other puppies arrived in yips and barks to tackle to Corporal by the knees and knock him back, sending themselves and the alarmed Corporal backwards to roll into Firecracker as well, and then plummet into the water with a loud splash and cry of surprise. The first to remerge was Firecracker, transforming into a toy boat with a large blinking eye and a loud 'shyaa?' of confusion to what had just happened. Soon Giroro splashed out with a gasp for air while the pups whined and whimpered as they had a bit of trouble swimming.

Firecracker hurried to the shore to transform into a big fuzzy puffball and shook itself dry, while the Corporal climbed up the edge to couch and sputter, then look back at the splashing pups. He contemplated going after them to help them out, but was a little confused why they weren't swimming their way out.

"Don't they know how to swim?" he asked aloud, directing his question to Karara who had jumped off the mother Doberman.

"They do, they probably aren't used to deep water," She explained, a little worried.

With a grunt Giroro gave a low curse and jumped back into the water; it looked like he had to save those little rascals before they got swallowed by the current.

Meanwhile, Kururu dismounted from the back of the large canine and watched the red warrior swim his way over to the frantic whining animals.

He glanced at the mother, she seemed neutral though perhaps expectant. She made no move to go into the water to save her children, so she either felt they could get out of it themselves, or that the Corporal will be able to get them out unharmed. Or, what was likely to happen from his experience taking care of such house pets, she will toss them back into the water if the Corporal brought them to shore so they learn how to swim on their own.

As expected, as soon as Giroro managed to retrieve two of the puppies and place them back on land, the mother got up, walked right up to them and shoved them right into the water.

Kururu did not laugh since he did not find that funny at all. Instead, he watched the… crestfallen? Yes, that word would fit; crestfallen and upset look on the Corporal.

The red invader did not understand what the mother was doing and growling at her to stop that only earned him a snarl and sneer, and then a harmless nip to the snout. Giroro flinched and then rubbed his face, then glowered at her confused for only a moment longer. When he turned to the yipping creature that she had knocked into the water again, he saw it was trying to swim its way back to shore on its own.

It took a few seconds, once realizing what the mother was all about Kururu watched in silence as the Corporal closed his eyes, sighed and them pushed out of the water with a somewhat hurt look on his face. The hurt only lasted for a glimmer of a moment, a slight glister in those sad, deep and navy blue eyes, they soon turned into contemplative and accepting, before a weary smile quirked the corner of that fanged mouth.

Without realizing or meaning to, Kururu's lips stretched into a soft smile. His senior might have been slow, now that he understands everything will be fine.

Giroro stood next to the mother and watched the pups struggle a bit to reach dry land, they shook themselves and rushed towards her, yipping and barking as if exclaiming if she saw how well they did. The Sergeant Major could almost see her reaction, she'd nod and give her children affectionate licks and puppy kisses, before making her way with her little bundle of mischief makers to the little Keronian girl. Karara smiled wide and reached out to hold the female Doberman's head and give it a loving nuzzle, happy to have the family back together.

Climbing up the slope with the soaked animals, Firecracker transformed into a towel and flung himself across the clearing to slap itself against the startled red face, and then started rubbing with squeaky noises as it tried to rinse away the water. Giroro gasped and grunted, peeled off the sheepish pink towel and then huffed, flustered. Firecracker wrapped itself around the red soldier's neck again and made a pleased sound, comfortable on the perch over his shoulders.

Giroro was amused and perhaps a little annoyed, he unwrapped the pink creature and placed him on the grass. Firecracker reverted back to his gelatinous and brightly colored pink blob, earning a surprised stare from Karara, and the renewed attention of the still energetic puppies.

Making sure the puppies were all present Giroro and Kururu settled on the grass, Karara sat between them looking flustered and guilty, not to mention a little teary eyed. She had been quiet during the whole play of events, and Giroro was a little worried since she had been a rather talkative little girl.

He decided to talk to her in hope it'll get their minds off things, "I hope you're not injured or hurt in any way?" he asked, trying to be friendly.

She hesitated for a moment, a warm blush colored her cheeks, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cause so much trouble," she sniffled and rubbed her eye with a fist to wipe away the tears, then peered up at the red soldier, "do you think Chiroro is alright? We got separated when I went down the laundry shaft…" she explained.

"I'm sure she's fine, the laundry room is usually stocked and if I recall, that's where Nobibi went when we split up, so with luck and my brother's expertise she will be found unharmed." He comforted, petting her on the head.

"That doesn't change the fact that knowing your father, he won't be too pleased with what happened, kuku…" Kururu murmured from where he had laid back, enjoying the lush and cool grass along with the soothing fresh air.

Giroro was annoyed at the yellow one's insensitive commentary, and though he wanted to say something to lighten the mood he really didn't have anything to contribute with. The three fell into a strange silence. Save for Firecracker's playful bantering noises with the house pets, the three were draped under a rather calm, neutral quietness.

Deciding that there was really no point in sitting idle, Giroro announced the need to at least contact his brother, perhaps Garuru had already found the missing yellow Keronian girl and was looking for them, so it was best to go back to the lower floor. Karara agreed, so with her straddled on the mother space canine, Kururu walking besides her, and Firecracker transformed into a massive and tangled leash, the puppies were all gathered to prevent them from running off again.

Kururu grinned when they began to move, watching that powerful body struggle at the task of keeping the pups in line. Thick glasses watched the rippling muscles of the red soldier flex and bend, with the task he held with the miniature tug of war against the army of mutts Giroro had to summon every ounce of strength in order to make sure none of them slipped out of his grip.

No one said anything while traveling across the gardening area, the only noises emitted were from Giroro and Firecracker grunting or squeaking at the puppies that kept trying to stray off the path, chasing a bug or wanting to jump into the bushes to explore. Kururu would chuckle every now and then yet not bother helping, spending most of his time following the red one. What started off as a position to stare and admire the red devil Corporal's broad shoulders, powerful flexing arms keeping a death grip on the leash, fine toned backline and ample rear, soon turned into a contemplative daze of what was about to come next.

Kururu was more than aware Shupepe will not take his bratty antics well, and Rinono had yet to make her presence known, so Kururu had no meat shield to hide behind if his brother chose to flip a lid and flog him. Though the Sergeant Major will never admit it out loud, Rinono's absence was starting to bother him; where did she go?

The yellow one gave his head a subtle shake to ward off the unwanted thoughts. Rinono was a strong woman and is not someone he should worry about, at least not for the time being. If Koii added her into the group for a reason then it was either Rinono provided something that no one else did, or Koii was going to use her against himself to pressure him or for something of that level. The yellow genius could not determine for a fact if Rinono was even going to let any harm befall him or Shupepe, she would be the first to take a stand against it.

Torn out of his own line of thought, Kururu flinched when Giroro gave a loud cry of surprise when the pups dragged him over a low fence, barking and yipping at what looked like a terrified space chicken that was minding its own business. The Sergeant Major could not help but snort in surprise and then reel around, Giroro was latching onto the leash pretty tight in a desperate attempt to not let go, but it was proving futile as the gods were struggling to get free. The pups have all gone through the openings between the poles of the fence and had left the red Keronian bent over the top; flaunting the goods at the frustrated Sergeant Major no less.

Though the yellow genius wanted nothing more than to ram right into that cushy and ample rump and _Fuck like No Tomorrow_, the circumstances were not providing and he had to, yet again, smother the burn in the pit of his stomach the best he could in order to try and help the troubled Corporal out of his funny predicament.

Long story short, Kururu and the Doberman female grabbed the Corporal by the belt and tried to pull him back, alas the sudden yank caused his belt to snap open. With the belt undone and caught between Kururu's hands and the female dog's maw, the Corporal lost his grip on the leash and was then flung forwards to lose balance and plunk face-first into the dirt, body bent upside down and in a very painful position. Without Giroro's physical support Firecracker could no longer keep together and snapped back to shape with a yelp of its own.

With the restrains snapped out of place the puppies ran amok and frightening the farm animals that were there. They got into the chicken pen and had the farm fowl terrified out of their wits, pelting them with eggs. They frightened the cows and lambs and sent them smashing through the barn's doors in fear, and then jumped into the mud and made a mess out of things as they left trails of paw prints, splotches and smears of mud and dirt everywhere they went.

Nevertheless, with the belt returned to the disheveled and neck-pained warrior, the space Doberman mother's help and Firecracker's transformation into doggie treats, only because no other alternative was present to lure the mischievous little critter out of their hiding place, Giroro was able to gather the little runs and leash them once more.

The farmers who had their property destroyed were by no means pleased, and gave the three of them an earful lecture about taking house pets out into their field without permission.

Kururu felt no guilt over the whole thing; rather he thought the farmers were being killjoys because he found the whole mess hilarious!

Giroro profusely apologized for all the trouble and promised to make it up to them soon, while Karara started crying and apologized to the farmers how it was all her fault and how she was so very, very sorry. Giroro, awkward and nervous at her loud bawling hastened to take her hand and comforted her, apologized to the farmers once more and then tried to guide the horde of muddied and dirties dogs off the farm.

It took the group longer than usual to guide the hyperactive bunch back into the lower floor, past the reluctant elite guards who refused to let them pass at first until they saw their ID cards, and even longer to find their way back to the dorm.

Much to Giroro's and Karara's relief, though Garuru did not look any better for wear himself, was waiting for them in their still ruined dorm along with an irate Tororo, a teary eyed Chiroro and a cranky Nobibi, who also looked like he had gone through the wringer.

Where Kururu could take a guess that they walked in on a verbal argument between Nobibi and Tororo, which may or may not be the reason Chiroro was on the brink of tears, the two sisters wasted no time latching onto each other to cry their eyes out, glad to see the other was unharmed and sorry for all the trouble they had caused. The mother Doberman scooted closer with her little horde of pups to comfort them with licks and nuzzles.

Nobibi however was just glad to have Firecracker back in one piece.

Where Garuru seemed relieved with everything turning out for the best, Giroro was too tired to give a damn about anything else from that point onward.

The red devil Corporal wasted no time to climb up the ladder to crash in bed with a loud, exhausted groan. Giroro was so spent he didn't even feel himself taking a swan dive into dreamland; coated with peace and quiet, the tiered Corporal began to snore.

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Some time later, Chief Medic Pururu was writing something on the clipboard when Chief Medic Shupepe arrived with Tororo.

"I see you decided to be the first to join the therapy session?" she said with a sweet smile.

"Nope," Tororo muttered, coming off as very irate and not quite safe to interact with, "everyone else was out for the count, pu pu…"

"There had been a…" Shupepe grumbled, trying to fish for the right words to say, "slight mishap in the dorm, so Corporal Giroro, Lieutenant Garuru and Sergeant Major Kururu will be having their turns in the therapy session later this evening. I'm afraid they're a bit too tired to do this at the time being." He explained.

Pururu arched a skeptical brow, far more concerned with the fact Garuru as well had passed the session than the others; "Dare I ask?" she voiced her thoughts, but felt it might be a moot point from how pale Shupepe looked. He had left in such a chipper mood earlier, too. What could have possible happened to down his attitude so bad?

"You don't want to know, trust me." The pale blue one sighed and walked ahead, leaving the lavender female with the cranky salmon-red youth. Once passing the half way point across the room and towards a nearby door however, Shupepe blinked and looked around, "Where is Rinono?"

"She was requested to attend presence with the Admiral," the nurse replied, then tensed at the others' apprehensive scowl, "Is something the matter?"

"N- no, just surprised; I'll be in the next room if you need me." He mumbled and shoved his hands into his coat pockets.

Pururu watched at the pale blue Keronian walked into the next room, perhaps a little faster in stride than usual. Choosing to disregard the odd behavior she turned to the tadpole with the pouty face before her, "I take it things had been busy? You seem strained."

"I don't wanna talk about it." Tororo snarled, though he bit back the anger it was clear the young one was by no means in a chatty mood.

"Well somebody's cranky," Pururu mumbled and decided to let the angry one have his space.

The nurse walked over towards a comfy armchair and then gestured for the irritated young Keronian to sit down on a recliner. She waited until he had done so, giving him a minute or two to calm down and perhaps seethe to himself a little more if only to get the heat out of his system. Pururu flipped through the papers on her clipboard and read through what was already written, before settling on a certain draft and then scribbling something down.

"Well now, since you and I are from the same platoon, I would like to inform you that anything you say during this counseling session will not leave this room. It will be confidential and only between the two of us, so please do not hesitate to tell me if something is bothering you." She explained, offering the young one another smile.

Tororo did not look too convinced, instead he scowled a bit more and then huffed, leaned back into the backrest and then hugged his knees, "Pu pu, I'd rather choke on a ship cable…" He muttered and looked away, not wanting to talk about anything at all nor to her of all people for that matter.

Pururu felt her brow twitch as a vein pulsated under the thick makeup masking her true features, yet she forced a chuckle to break the tension lingering heavy in the air nonetheless, "Now, Tororo, don't be stubborn. I know you and I don't get along too well but you can consider this a good communication practice." She reasoned, and then squared her shoulders in a nonchalant shrug, "Unless you'd rather talk to Sergeant Major Kururu's brother, Chief Medic Shupepe and I could switch roles?"

Tororo twitched, his scowl turned more downwards then before, downcast and defeated the tadpole unwrapped his arms from around his knees just a little, and then settled on the couch in a way he found more comfortable; his body felt tight and rigid, it was hard to relax. "Where's Zoruru?" he blurted, the insecurity and discomfort clear in his voice, "He'd been gone since last night and there is no trace of him anywhere." He complained.

At that, Pururu blinked in puzzlement, "Lance Corporal Zoruru? I recall Recruit Rinono told me she saw him heading into the Admiral's chamber earlier this morning. Did he not go back to the dormitory afterwards?" she inquired, confused.

That seemed to flick a switch of alarm across the little one's features, "What? No! We hadn't seen him at all! Unless… he came when we weren't there?" he placed a hand on his head, in a gesture akin to scratching his scalp.

"And why would you not be in the dorm? I recall the team was asked not to leave until orders had been submitted." She asked, paused and then her eyelids drooped and she managed a small scowl, "Don't tell me you boys were up to no good again," he mumbled, not a question.

Tororo looked a little sheepish, "Well…" he drawled.

Tororo contemplated the thought of explaining the whole story to the nurse or not. Choosing that anything he could use against the Sergeant Major counted as blackmail, Tororo began telling her everything from the events of Shupepe's forced back massage onto Giroro, the bath fight and then the dogs, all the while watching the color drain from her face, and the twitchiness of her brows and lips.

In the back of his mind, Recruit Tororo figured this counseling session may not be all that bad after all.

Seeing the hilarious traumatized reactions on Pururu's face was making him feel better already!

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Meanwhile, as Tororo tattled the tall tales being told, Chief Medic Shupepe was in the next room deaf to all the rambling.

Out of sight, out of mind, and therefore out of earshot the anxious Medic had spent the first few minutes pacing back and forth across the room in deep, worried thoughts. Striding like a soldier in a march with his arms behind his back and a deep frown on his brows, Shupepe gave a low sneering grunt and then reclined on an office chair by dropping his weight into the cushioned seat, earning a low creak as it absorbed his weight and rolled back against the wall.

Slouched on the seat with his legs outstretched, his elbows on the armrests and his fingers intertwined, a stern and irate scowl stretched across his features.

Having been asked to disassemble and interrogate the half-cybernetic assassin was one thing, but requesting Rinono's presence without informing him first was another.

What was Koii planning to call for Rinono and not for him? He worried if his sister was going to be asked to do something tedious, and knowing her with a little convincing she would agree without a second thought, oblivious to the dangers attached. She was by no means a warrior and was not cut out for this style of manipulative lifestyle, she constantly got herself in the position of being the scapegoat at best.

There were times Shupepe wondered why he'd look out for her; she could be so daft and clumsy sometimes it was infuriating! But she was family, and though she wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed she was still his sister! If Kururu got wind of this, Shupepe was sure his baby brother though he may not look it will cry for blood if Koii laid a finger on Rinono.

Aggravated, frustrated and perhaps too anxious to think straight, the Chief Medic could not excuse himself for a good long walk, not with the therapy session happening just outside the door nor with the other patients being out for the count.

Or rather, Corporal Giroro was out for the count when he had returned to the dorm, with Kururu in the same bunk bed giving the unconscious soldier a good back massage to go with it. The poor man looked worse for wear, and from the look of the dogs that continued to make a mess out of the room, the pale blue Keronian was not surprised.

While Garuru had a good long talk to the four tadpoles in the room, Shupepe could tell the Lieutenant was speaking from experience with his controlled and contemplative tone, choice of words and the lack of any actual anger in his voice. It came to the fact he was a responsible adult who had helped rear a little brother, Shupepe would guess Lieutenant Garuru seemed to get his point across to the four young ones with ease and without any hurt feelings, even if Karara seemed to be upset throughout the whole thing. The Chief Medic would think it was safe to assume she was just upset at being the cause of the whole dilemma and feared what her father would say or do when he finds out about it.

The Medic had half a mind to give his own brother a good ear-thrashing, and though the other half agreed, with the placid and almost loving look on Kururu's face as he kneaded Giroro's weary back, disregarding the somewhat intimate closeness of their position due to the little space the bed provided, Shupepe decided to save his lecture for later since he did not want to confront his brother when he was like this.

The Medic knew better than to mess with his sibling when the yellow one was enjoying himself, even if it was a one-sided bonding moment since Giroro was asleep, ruining Kururu's fun was never a good thing, he knew that well enough from personal experience alone.

Giroro, even in his sleep he gave a few low grunts whenever Kururu would press onto the still tender and soft spots, working out the tension and kneading them better; every muffled 'unf' from the red one earned a pleased grin from the yellow one. Shupepe wondered if Kururu was being unlike himself and overly considerate, or just cheeky. It was obvious the red soldier was much too tired to fight back, not with Kururu's experienced fingers training down those achy bones and making him feel so much better.

Thinking it was best to leave well enough alone, with the Corporal and Sergeant Major out of the count, Chief Medic Shupepe asked Lieutenant Garuru and Recruit Tororo which of them wanted to attend the therapy and health examination first. Of course, since Garuru was expecting Nobibi's father to arrive in order to escort the girls back home he was unable to leave the room, therefore Tororo was the only one available with no excuse to skip the session.

It were times like this the Medic wondered if he should have picked up smoking; he was so tense he needed some sort of outlet to burn.

Never one to like leaving things behind half finished, Shupepe stretched his arms over his head and contemplated his choices.

With a decisive nod to himself he pushed off the chair, rolled his shoulders and then popped the kinks in his stiff neck. There were more important things to do than idle with things he could not change. He walked out of the room and passed by the startled nurse and recruit, gesturing that he needed to make a quick run before the others started their session. Without giving Pururu or Tororo a chance to respond, he hurried off towards the Admiral's private chamber.

There was something that needed to be done. He still needed to put that assassin back together before they leave tomorrow.

After all, it would be rude to leave the guy hanging or in pieces no matter how Koii preferred it that way.


	11. Howling Gales

**. o 0 Chapter Eleven 0 o** .

Sergeant Major Kururu blinked at the wall, unseeing eyes behind thick glasses focused on nothing as the small space he occupied was shrouded in darkness.

His upper body rested against the back of the unmoving Corporal, comfortable over the broad shoulder blades the yellow Keronian placed his hands on either bicep of Giroro's arms, closed his eyes again to listen to the calm rhythmic heartbeats and breathing.

Giroro felt so cushy and warm to the touch, and due to the agony the red one had gone through his body was a little tender as well. Even after a thorough massaging treatment the red invader was sore all over, Kururu's expert fingers could define the spots where the bumps and bruises decorated that weary body and abused muscles, and will still ache for another few days before they mend over. He wondered just how long Giroro was willing to tolerate the discomfort until they wear off.

Taking a deep breath of that scent the yellow one could detect upturned dirt, fresh cut grass, and a hint of what he would guess as mineral water.

As much as Kururu wanted to bite, lick or suck on that gorgeous apple-red skin, he knew that any contact with moist appendages would startle the warrior awake. Just because Giroro was out for the count did not mean he was incapable of sense. The red warrior was quick on the feet if or when his senses were shocked; his reactions were sharp when one would least expect them to be regardless of the odds playing against him.

Kururu did not know how long he had been like that, having found such a nice roost against the other's back, he did not want to trade the feeling for anything in the world. Although curry was a very tempting trade, he fancied the thought of both mixed together and a wide, cheeky grin stretched across his features. Of course Kururu was quick to control and smother it since this was not the time for such wayward thoughts.

He was also pleased that no one dared to bother him and ruin the moment.

He had claimed this spot a good hour ago, and when Karara and Chiroro's father came to pick them up Kururu had not left the safe hidden refuge. He had pulled the curtains a short while before the angry parent arrived, thus veiling himself and the unconscious Corporal from sight. Even after Bobaba had left with his daughters, motley crew of space mutts and a begrudging Nobibi, Kururu tensed at he thought the lieutenant would call him out since there was no one else in the room.

But… it never happened…

When the yellow genius peered from under the curtain he found that Garuru had settled on the bunk bed below them, maybe to keep sentry over any possible shenanigans the yellow imp was planning to do to his little brother, or to make sure they were not disturbed? Kururu had no clue. He didn't know Garuru all that well despite the similarities he had with Giroro, he found it was a little difficult to guess what the purple one was thinking or planning.

Plus! So far, Pururu was the only one to acknowledge his affinity to the red numbskull from the first hint, and though the Keroro platoon had the bombshell dropped onto their lap they were daft and forgot about it, as if it never happened. Sure it served to make everything fall back into place just like before, that didn't stop the Sergeant Major from feeling something a little different had happened to their lives from that point onwards.

Now he half-lay over to the red warrior who was sleeping soundly from what he could tell, skin to skin and a strange yet calm sense of euphoria overwhelmed him. Without thinking he slid his hands down those fine toned arms and then wrapped them around the other, circling the torso and slipping his palms under the belt to keep in touch with the white skin. He pressed his face against that backline, taking in the warmth it offered with a very pleased smile.

The tingling sensation he received from that back-hug was more sensual than sexual, which Kururu found a much more tolerable and welcomed feeling. The last thing he'd want is end up f- … _mucking_ around where he knew he shouldn't, all things considered.

Though he would admit being this close to Giroro was a reward on its own, getting the chance to spend so much time just sitting there left him feeling nice and tingly all over. It was often a feeling he loathed, but somehow the niceness was something he craved every now and then and this sort of feeling was something he accepted. Sergeant Major Kururu was also a little besides himself regarding the whole 'feeling' thing. He was pretty sure he was not 'in love' with the red handsome devil, so why was Giroro's presence and actions instigating such violent reactions out of him, as if he was some horny teenager with little to no self restraint and fawning over a school crush?

It was absurd and it bothered him on a minor level as he was above such silly things; someone of his astute rank and stature should be ashamed of such monkey business!

The tiny and dirty part in the back of his mind argued with a chuckle how even a bad monkey liked a good spanking…

The Sergeant Major shook his head to toss out the thought, and ignored the warm tingle that colored his face. Sometimes he was his own worst enemy indeed.

He did not need any more of these shenanigans; he had to keep his priorities straight! But if he was honest with himself, and he hated to be honest with himself most of the time, then there was no other way to explain the fixation, was there? Was he really falling for the Corporal but the realization did not sink in, and he was just in denial? The yellow Keronian thought he might just be slipping, maybe he was letting his feelings and desires run away with him, if he did not detach them soon things will only spiral in ways he himself will not like.

But Kururu liked bad and disgusting things, what were the chances he wouldn't enjoy it by the time it was over?

Maybe now that Hinata Natsumi was out of the way he could _persuade_ the hothead and…

**_No!_** He _needn't_ go down that wavelength! It was blowing things out of proportion on So Many Levels!

Why was the mere thought of getting down and dirty with the Corporal turning him on? Was he desperate or just deprived? It was starting to really make him cranky…

Ignoring the heat searing through his cheeks Kururu continued his internal struggle. Giroro is his favorite plaything, getting attached to a toy will not end well on the long run since he will have to 'outgrow' it at some point, and if push comes to shove then knowing Koii she had something in store for all of them, himself or Giroro included. Kururu, in his younger days had lost one too many favorite toys because he got too attached and was forced to let go, thus he learned from experience not to do that if he wanted to enjoy them for as long as they lasted.

And yet, the tiny part of him, the child that still liked to play brought forth feelings he had long since buried.

Would he be able to detach himself from Giroro if he was determined enough to try? Would he _want_ to? _Should_ he try?

"If you dig your fingers any deeper, Kururu, I might as well be degraded into a pincushion," was the low, rasped and lull shattering whisper of a groggy Corporal, "Seriously, do you mind? Your nails are starting to sting." he then muttered and sounding not at all angry, perhaps just a little annoyed at having long and pointy digits pricked into his torso.

Kururu would have jumped out of his skin in surprise if he wasn't too keen on keeping himself together well enough not to react, that did nothing to stop his heart from beating a little faster, however.

The yellow one twitched his fingers from where he realized he was cupping the red one's flat and manly breasts, he felt his lips twitch as a thousand and one dirty thoughts popped into his mind, but he hastened to smother them before they spout their way out of his mouth. Kururu, in a slow and almost timid motion flexed his fingers to pluck them from the skin, then slid them across the smooth bust and over the sides, almost playful and teasing, pushed himself to sit up and hoped the bunk bed was dark enough to hide the fluster coloring his face.

Giroro, who still lay half to his side but most on his belly, stretched his arms and legs in full length before rolling over, just enough to lay more to his back without invading the space Kururu occupied, not bothering to sit up just yet. The spots where Kururu was groping him stung a bit as the nails left marks, but he chose not to bring it up. Droopy, navy blue eyes adjusted to the dim lit space, a hint of pearly white fangs shown under those downcast lips.

The Corporal cleared his throat before speaking, "Give me one good reason not to kick your face in." He mumbled, not quite a sneer or a scowl, but a clear hint of annoyance nonetheless.

"Go ahead, it wouldn't be unusual coming from you, kuku," Kururu replied, albeit quieter than intended.

That seemed to cause a switch to flick in the Corporal's mind and he frowned. Giroro pushed up from the mattress to sit up more upright and then stare at the yellow invader, the lights coming from beyond the curtains sufficient to cast just enough brightness to tell the red warrior that the yellow one was not smiling. Kururu's tone of voice may have been cheeky, though quiet, but that mouth was downcast and displeased, or perhaps nervous.

A hint of something shone on the scarred Keronian's face and he narrowed his eyes at the other. "Kururu," he began, tone slow and easy.

Before the Corporal could say anything the door to the dormitory opened with the whir and whoosh of machines, and then calm footfalls could be heard. After a bit of tense silence from the two hidden frogs they eavesdropped on the greeting the lavender female shared with the tired purple lieutenant. Though Giroro seemed to focus more on the female's voice, Kururu could not help but note the red invader was leaning a bit too close to the curtains, therefore getting a bit too close to his person.

Pururu chuckled and continued her conversation, "No, not really. Recruit Tororo had finished his session and had been escorted to the new ship to inspect it; Chief Medic Shupepe wanted to show him around the deck before Sergeant Major Kururu got there." She explained and arched a brow, "Although… it appears to me Shupepe and Kururu don't really get along too well; do you think it's wise to force them into such a mission?" she asked, sounding a little concerned.

"The Admiral's orders were clear; she wanted those three included because they complemented one another. However, I do understand your concern, Chief Medic, Sergeant Major Kururu had been rather…" he paused, and the yellow one did not need to peer from behind the curtains to know the purple one was giving a general glance at his direction, "_difficult_, I like to think this mission will help him on the long run, among other things."

"From the grin on your face that only spells trouble," She muttered, which earned her a chuckle from her captain. With a huff and slight fluster, Pururu glanced at the clipboard in her hands again and flicked through the pages, then after a pause she looked at the purple one once more, "At any case, since Sergeant Major Kururu and Giroro aren't available, I believe it is your turn? If so, then please come with me to the office and we can get started." She smiled.

"Of course; please, lead the way." The lieutenant pushed off the mattress and then gestured for her to go ahead.

Kururu and Giroro remained still within their hiding place listening to the footfalls as they left the room, the door swooshed shut and then there was nothing. It took a few seconds before Giroro attempted to remove the curtains, but Kururu was swift to grab that wrist before it reached the cloth. The Corporal was confused, but did not insist when the other said nothing, so he lowered his hand while giving the yellow one strange looks.

"Something bothering you, Kururu?" he asked, a little louder than before, concern clear in his tone, "You're not usually this quiet." He argued.

And for some internal reason chose not to pull away from the other's hold, even though he knew he probably should. Although he knew close to nothing about Chief Medic Shupepe, if Pururu voiced her concern to Garuru then it might be something bigger, especially with the way Kururu's silence only seemed to feed that suspicion even more.

If Giroro didn't know any better he'd say Kururu was… scared?

"I just have a lot on my mind, senior." Kururu muttered a second later and brought a hand to rub his forehead, and this time his voice came a bit more abrasive than intended.

The yellow one released his hold, not wanting to deal with this issue and yet needing to get his mind off things. What could he do to solve this without ending up in a blood bath? His mind was in a spiral. He wanted to fess up to the other and get this uncomfortable load off his chest, while all his body wanted was to get comfortable in a whole different setting. The Sergeant Major didn't even know why he was getting so uptight for; was it something he ate?

"Well someone's cranky," Giroro mumbled and then scooted just a bit away to give the yellow Keronian some space. "If you've got issues with your brother don't take them out on me. I think we have bigger fish to fry." He added, sounding more confident. "But be honest, Kururu; are things between you and your brother okay? Do you think it would affect this mission?"

"Shupepe is a master in chii-blocking; he had studied acupuncture for years and excelled in ways I find… noteworthy." He smiled, halfhearted at best, "He also has a dark streak to him and would have no qualms taking out his own men if it means securing the goal of a mission," Kururu turned to Giroro with a tense scowl, "Senior, if we get in some sort of setback do Not under any circumstances fight him, just run the hell away." He exclaimed, his tone far more serious than Giroro was used to.

"Although he had been the more rational person in the family, he and I don't see eye to eye and if Rinono fails to pacify them then I don't think Koii herself can lay a finger on him," he added, paused and then snorted, "Heck, she cant lay a finger on me either but that's besides the point." He waved a hand, "At any case, I really don't think I should be telling you this, but it's been eating me ever since we got here." He said, giving the tense Corporal an odd look.

"Shupepe, Rinono and I are siblings, yes, but to tell you the truth we aren't really all that tight-knit family junk; we're army brats and have no trouble beating the shit out of one another if we were ordered to, unlike you and Garuru neither of us plan on pulling back the punches." He glanced away, thinking.

He paused for a moment after that to gather his thoughts, contemplating how much to share, "If you go against Rinono, don't hurt her, she can be a bit dunce and the army life really isn't for her; she joined because she believes it'll keep us together like a family; we hadn't been a family in ages…" he huffed, sounding more frustrated at her naive thoughts than anything, "She wanted to make sure we'll be okay; Shupepe on the other hand only looks out for her because he thinks he needs to," he said, and his expression soured.

"I can't help this bad feeling that as soon as things boil over then some really big shit will hit the fan, but unless I get more closure over the whole thing I really can't explain. And…" he hesitated, looking a little flustered, "you're… the only one I can trust with this." He cleared his throat and straightened up, "Just understand that this is complicated; I usually don't give a damn about family issues but this is just pushing it, ya know?" he growled, the tension growing tighter and making him more irate.

Giroro's expression was neutral, and Kururu wondered if he was talking too fast for the Corporal to follow. Then, a light wrinkle of concern formed on those brows, and slanted passionate eyes sent butterflies fluttering in Kururu's stomach. The look of compassion Giroro was giving him made the yellow imp sick in the stomach. His toes felt so cold all of a sudden, too.

"You pretend not to care and have no trouble making a ruckus just to make people angry, but deep down inside you'd really rather not fight family, huh?" he asked, a tiny fanged smile curled across those thin, amused lips, "I take back everything I said about you, Kururu; there is really more to you than meets the eye, isn't there."

Kururu felt his brain boil as his cheeks warm up, he snorted in a mock scoffing and offended reaction as he tried to act as casual as ever, "Ku! I believe you're totally getting the wrong impression, senior. I'm just not as much a guppy as the rest of you." He taunted and jabbed a finger into the white of the Corporal's belly.

With a slight 'oof!' at the jab, the yellow invader was rewarded with a chuckle that sent a shudder up his spine, "Of course, whatever you say." Giroro smiled, straightened up and then hugged his knees closer to his chest, "So what's the plan? If you don't plan on fighting your siblings, what are the chances things would go smoothly if you just cooperate?"

"Ya see, senior, that's just it." Kururu muttered, his hands to his own ankles and eyes to the wrinkles on the curtain, not wanting to give the red one the chance to see the warmth coloring his face; why the hell was he getting all nervous for, damn it? What was _wrong_ with him!

"I know Rinono can be cooperative, but when it comes to strength she's pretty much the tank amongst the three of us; so if she decides to pummel you then pray to whatever deity you believe in that she won't flatten you into a waffle; kuku." He took a breather to clear his mind, "Also, Shupepe and I can get along well enough, but he's… I dunno, I think he set himself to be a tool for Koii more than he realized, so now I dunno if I can even trust him anymore." He hugged himself, appalled at the thought, but acknowledging he had to get that out there.

The stern look he received from Giroro was enough to make him feel better, though he had no idea why.

Giroro scowled, the blue of his eyes became more clear, "So they're technically puppets, is that it?"

"Senior, in this game of war it's all about who gets to be the puppeteer, and right now Koii holds all the strings to our fate, unfortunately." Kururu muttered.

Giroro arched a brow and stopped hugging his knees, he sent Kururu a mild curious look, "You know it's been bothering me for a while, but why do you constantly call Koii by name and not by rank? I know you already said she was your teacher but I can't help but feel there is more to it."

"She'd been the one funding all my projects when the invasion budget wasn't enough;" Kururu snapped with a snarl, "There! _Happy?_"

Giroro's eyes widened as he didn't quite get why Kururu was angry. He said nothing while the awkward silence lingered, so he cleared his throat and gestured for the other to continue. He'll blame it all on Keroro for now, that idiot had a way of wasting their funding on Gundam models and Giroro wouldn't blame the Sergeant Major for being cranky about it, either.

Kururu huffed and stretched his hands as if preparing to dance his fingers across a non-existent keyboard, "Like I said, my siblings and I are army brats, it's only natural we'd have footholds or supporters somewhere from someone who outranks us, no?" he muttered, then tried to be nicer though he had no idea why, "Though Koii and us are connected there is really no 'love' between us, she's just an elder and we're her tools, she had been teaching us the ropes since we were kids so I guess it all boiled down to the point that I cant stand her…" he growled, the last line trailed off into silence, Kururu could not bring himself to say it out loud, not yet.

"Whoa, easy there," Giroro raised both hands in hope of calming the irritated soldier, he had never seen Kururu so riled up in such a manner before, and it was getting confusing keeping track of all he was being told. "I know it probably sounds really stupid coming from me, but you shouldn't lose your head over this, get yourself together." He advised.

Kururu stiffened, turned to face the other and the downcast scowl curved up into a mean grin, "Kukuku! You're right, senior, it does sound pretty stupid coming from a meathead like you! Kuu kuku!" he laughed, then decided he had had enough of being angry; Sergeant Major Kururu scooted closer and right into the other's personal space, invading it, "In fact, it's so stupid it makes me want to crack your skull open just to make sure you got a brain in there at all!" he said, perhaps harsher than intended.

Navy blue eyes stared in surprise at the reflective disks looking straight at him, and a twinge of alarm bit into his chest as his breathing space was invaded. Giroro flailed his hands a bit with a fluster as he tried to move their faces away from one another, but found he had no space to move away to. Kururu had him cornered and it was difficult to dodge the physical contact altogether.

But then there was something about the way Kururu was looming over him, something Giroro was not quite able to pinpoint, but it was a gut feeling that told him Kururu was tormenting him in such a manner was the only way he knew how to cope with the pressure.

"You have ten seconds to get out of my face!" Giroro snarled, coming off as defensive if only to hide how he was about to freak out.

"And if I refuse?" Kururu almost whispered, leaning in closer with his hands to the walls and framing the Corporal's head, Kururu looked like he was swooping in for a kiss, "Keron knows I can silence you in my own ways, senior; trust me when I say you do not want to make an enemy out of me." He sneered, or smiled; at this point Giroro couldn't tell which from which, "Don't get me wrong, just because I told you things does not mean I'm helpless; lets just say what I told you was a 'need to know' basis." He chuckled.

Giroro did not know what he was thinking when he replied, "Funny, didn't seem that way to me," he said in a somewhat superior tone, "it sounded like you were scared and hoping for someone to comfort you." He blurted.

Kururu's expression deadpanned, his lips twitched only once, and the Corporal watched in the dim light how the yellow one's face shifted into a light tone of orange.

Just as the realization that the change in color was not out of embarrassment sank into Giroro's consciousness, the next thing he knew he was punched in the face so hard he was sent spinning out of their hiding place, wrapped into the curtains he was struck hard enough to rip it out of place and then be sent flying across the room to hit the opposite wall, then slam and get wedged upside down into the body of a bent up cabinet. With his feet over his head, eyes and mind spinning the whole room around him, Giroro was literally thrown into a daze.

Kururu, who's face was flushed with an indescribable amount of myriad emotions only hopped out of the bunk bed to march to the disoriented frog, grabbed the Corporal by the earflaps and then yanked him down, thumping that thick skull against the floor in an aggressive display of displeasure, before rolling the bundled and hapless warrior onto his back. Kururu stomped onto the other's belly and felt only a meager twitch of satisfaction as the breathless 'oomph!' he received.

He glowered down into the teary eyes and confused face of the Corporal. "I did not ask for your faulty observation, senior," he hissed, venomous and vile with perhaps murderous intent, the orange-toned face was shadowed with indescribable fury glowered down at him, the contrast shown clear due to the bright lit lights of the dorm, "I need not warn you twice, do not make an enemy out of me for I will not think twice about cutting you down to size, _senior_." He growled, pressed his foot harder into the white of the others belly for emphasis, and then pushed away while sending Giroro rolled with the push onto his abused stomach.

Giroro struggled against the binds of the curtain wrapped around him for a good few minutes before getting free, but it was long after Kururu had stomped his way out of the dorm. The Corporal felt his abused body throb all over with a low groan of pain; he didn't need to be told it was clear he had hit a nerve and pissed Kururu in the worst way imaginable. Although he wasn't sure what it was he had said exactly, the Sergeant Major was not in a very social mood and it was best to leave him alone.

Aggravated and feeling considerably insecure, along with a heavy sense of guilt he could not explain, alone and aching within every inch of his body Giroro sighed and lay back down with a grunt.

How often was it for Kururu to open up to anyone, much less trust to express such insecurities? Giroro was not sure what it was he had said to set the yellow one off, but he felt pretty bad about it.

Kururu was looking for someone to talk to and the warrior hit a sore spot somewhere. Some help he was turning out to be; and knowing his luck he just made things worse.

A part of him felt that he should be angry at Kururu; who the hell did that twat think he was? Giroro should go right after him and give him a well deserved pounding for his insolence, and yet the red soldier felt that Kururu was upset and would not have reacted in such a physically violent manner if he was feeling fine; something was really bothering him.

Hell! Since when did Kururu ever respond in a physical manner? The guy always got back to others with his wits and mind, never with his fists, so to the Corporal this was a first.

Kururu needed time to cool off, whatever was bothering the Sergeant Major was something he may or may not have already explained to the red warrior; whatever the issue was it was not something the red invader should overstep. After all, if Kururu was aggravated and tense because the whole deal revolved about his siblings, then the scarred Keronian could not blame him. If someone threatened to hurt Garuru or any of his platoon members, including Kururu, then Giroro would not hesitate to be as aggressive as needed to ensure their safety.

That is when the odd sense of abandon returned, the feeling that he had forgotten something, and once again the Corporal had no idea how to explain it.

With a frustrated grunt he slammed his fist to the floor with a growl, let the tingling ache trickle through his fingers just a little more, and then brought his hands to his face to block out the blinding bright lights of the dorm.

Things were not looking up for him at all.

**. o 0 o 0 o .**

Lieutenant Garuru was looking over the parchment in his hand, provided by Chief Medic Pururu, when he stopped by the curb. He looked up from the parchment to decide if he needed to go back to the dorm or check up with Recruit Tororo at their new vessel, and that was when he noticed a familiar yellow figure seated just a few feet away.

Sergeant Major Kururu was on a bench, hunched up with his head low and face buried in his hands, elbows pinned to his knees and looking like he had been wallowing in misery for hours. The lieutenant could not hear anything, but the deep breathing of the yellow youth was obvious with the noticeable rise and fall of his chest.

Kururu was breathing in a slow, force-controlled tempo; from the lieutenant's experience that was a breathing exercise for the sake of calming ones mind and body. Did something happen?

The bench had no backrest and was placed against the opposite wall. Behind the yellow Keronian was a large glass window showing the sparkling galaxy with all its glorious wonders, sending enough illuminating light from the window to give that yellow skin a subtle glow. Alas, the dazzling lights did nothing to make Kururu feel any better from what the Lieutenant could see. The cool and soothing light was as comforting as the glow of moonlight, as far as Garuru was concerned.

The wards were half-lit for some reason; the lieutenant recalled they were bright lit the day before so why were they shallow today? He looked up at the much darkened ceiling, and then noticed that some of them were missing. In fact some seemed to have been shattered; were those… claw marks? Garuru stared; though his expression did not change by much, the slight dilating of his pupils was enough to hint that he had a pretty good idea what may or may not happened here the earlier night.

Bringing up more questions than answers, as well as more concern, the lieutenant released a long exhale through the nose to keep calm; now was not the time to get tense. Deciding not to think of the matter for the time being, he looked back at the yellow Keronian sitting across the ward.

They were at a junction within the wayward wards of the Elite floor; the spot was like a triangle connecting the dormitory to the dining room and infirmary, from which he had just left. There was no other junction joining all three sections together, so it was clear something had happened and a clash occurred in this very spot, but he had not noticed it when he had followed Pururu to the infirmary earlier. Then again she was rambling about the ship preparations as well as other mundane things, so it was possible he may have missed it.

Calm and steady the purple warrior approached, and then stopped just a few steps away from the other. When the Sergeant Major made no move or hint to acknowledge Garuru's presence, the lieutenant walked over and sat down besides him, elbows to his knees and back hunched just a little, the captain noticed the most subtle flinch from Kururu.

They remained still, neither of them moved for what felt like a good ten minutes.

Kururu disturbed the silence when he drew in a long, deep breath and straightened up just a little, his hands clapped together in front of his face as he covered his snout and mouth. Kururu let his fingers intertwine and then lowered his mitts to knee level, elbows still on his knees he heaved a low sight and tilted his head and shoulders to pop a few uncomfortable knots. Garuru did not need to turn to look at him, that inhale sounded just a tad bit wet, almost a sniffle, meaning the Sergeant was holding back emotions.

"I think I messed up, ku…" he croaked, tired, "What are the chances I get to keep my hide intact?" he joked.

"Depends on the severity of what you've done." Garuru replied, arms crossed over his chest he glanced at the yellow Keronian, "Speaking of which, shouldn't you be in the dormitory?"

"I rather take my chances with an overdose of wasabi sauce than go back in there right now, kuku…" the Sergeant Major snorted, freed his hand from their tight grip against one another to slip a finger under his glasses to rub his eye, and then stretched them over his head.

Kururu gave a low grunt afterwards and leaned back against the bench, chin down he stared at his outstretched toes. Neither he nor Garuru said anything, the two remained silent. Although the yellow invader had nothing on or against the purple warrior, he couldn't help but feel a little strange. His upset and uptight tension was dwindling and he was starting to feel a little better, though he had no idea why seeing neither of them were doing anything.

It almost felt as if having Garuru there pulled all the bad feelings away, soaking them up like a sponge and leaving Kururu with a clear mind.

"Ah, so there you are!" came the merry voice of Chief Medic Pururu, she walked down the ward in a bit of a hurry with a clipboard in her hands, she glanced at the yellow Keronian with a greeting smile before turning her attention to her captain, "I forgot to give you these, the Admiral requested that you read them before the mission starts." She said and offered her leader a few more parchments, then glanced to the other, "And since you're here, Sergeant Major, I take it you're ready for your counseling session and physical exam?" she smiled.

"Cant be arsed," Kururu grinned, wide and cheeky and let his body sink, head between shoulders he would have kicked back if only the bench had a backrest. "Have senior go first."

Pururu pinned her fists to her hip and sighed, giving the yellow imp a slight scolding look, "Please tell me he's in the dormitory, because I have other things to do than waste time tracking your sorry tails, you know. I get enough of that with Tororo and Taruru." She muttered.

"Speaking of which," Garuru interrupted and sat more upright, dignified, he glanced up from the parchments he had skimmed though, "besides the Admiral, are Recruit Tororo, the Sergeant Major, or I allowed into the Quarry room?"

"Not that I know of; the Admiral and Chief Medic Shupepe made it quite clear that no one is allowed near the tank." Pururu replied, a little surprised at the sudden question.

"Any news from Lance Corporal Zoruru, then?" Garuru asked, eyes narrowed just the tiniest bit.

"Hadn't seen him since yesterday, but Recruit Rinono said she saw him heading into the Admiral's chamber earlier this morning." The nurse replied, frowned in concern and then tilted her weight to one side, confused at her leader's inquires; she looked like she wanted to say something more then chose not to, "Why? Was Zoruru supposed to join you on the mission?"

"No, I just need to have a word with him before our departure," Garuru answered, then offered the papers he was holding to the silent Sergeant Major. "but never mind that, I guess I could just note it down and have it delivered to him later," he said, switching to a different tangent.

While the lieutenant and nurse chattered, Kururu read through the parchments fast yet with care, making sure to stow away any and all information given. Garuru, though not as close to him as Giroro, had felt it necessary to share the information thus had no qualms starting a conversation with the nurse with him present; the Sergeant Major knew better than to reject such cooperative actions. If this was a 'need to know' basis, then this was perhaps the chance the lieutenant had to provide the Sergeant Major with food for thought.

Although Kururu preferred curry since it was more fulfilling, this unsatisfactory replacement will just have to do.

So far the parchment was a formal-toned briefing of the mission with a few extra bits of information here and there. The ship they were being given was a custom made design, almost a prototype it seemed, and would serve as their base of operation since it was not meant land on the planet once they got there, something about the surface being unfitting to set a base camp.

The ship itself was constructed of three levels disregarding the roof and docking bay at the tail-end bottom, there was the Admiral cabin and bridge on the top floor. There were two bunker rooms since one was for the group team and the other for the ship maintenance squad, there was also a kitchen and restrooms, as well as what looked like a computer room fitted with a bar or café of sorts in the middle floor, and the storage on the bottom level.

There was no indication where this Quarry room was at, though. Kururu had a hunch it was possible to be hidden somewhere on the cabin, since the Admiral didn't want anyone snooping around where they weren't allowed.

Whatever was in that tank, the yellow soldier hoped it was not something lethal, for Koii's sake.

Not that he cared or anything. The last thing he'd want is end up cleaning up after her.

In the storage, there was a section for their transportation vehicles and garage, and a back-up mainframe for the main computer in the middle floor, in case they needed access and didn't want to waste time going up and down all the time. There were vehicles provided along with weapons and certain types of food Kururu found strange.

Why was everything in the description making it seem like they were going to some sort of tundra? Snow-mobiles; winter outfits that included but not limited to thick boots and gloves, heavy coats, earmuffs and scarves as well as lots of heat preserving material.

What kind of planet was this Wasuru TE, anyway? From the parchments, it was conquered by the Keron Army a few decades before he was born, and yet there was nothing on these papers describing what kind of planet it was at all. Nothing about the terrain, climate, natural habitat, eco system, the creatures that lived on the planet or anything of that sort, it was almost as if it was just… a big hunk of rock floating in outer space. Also, from the looks of things it was a very cold, barren and desolate place.

That did not bode well with their Keronian nature; cold was bad for them over a prolonged amount of time.

That was when the cheeky part of his mind whispered how it would be nice to cuddle up to someone in order to stay warm at night. Kururu shook his head with a sudden jerk and palmed his face, infuriated and frustrated at himself; why the hell was he riled up like this? It was distracting.

That was when the loud striding footfalls of someone approaching caught the three Keronians attention. They were coming from the direction of the dormitory. However, the second Kururu recognized the tempo of the angry stride he wasted no time giving the papers back to the lieutenant. From the looks of his brother's cold eyes when he appeared he meant business, this time the blue Keronian was not playing around.

Never one to stop his march the pale blue Keronian gave Kururu a slight smack on the shoulder and gestured for him to follow, "Kururu, you, me, office, _Now!_" he demanded, and without giving the others a second glance he marched past the startled and confused lavender nurse towards the infirmary.

Shupepe continued never once looking back to see if the other was following, he didn't need to as Pururu and Garuru watched the Sergeant Major grunt, stretch out his arms and legs and then walk after his sibling with a rather mischievous grin stretched across that darkened expression. Pururu felt an odd sense of dread building up, while Garuru wondered if things were going to work out between those two at all; the tension was disconcerting.

Choosing to let things rest for now, Garuru turned to the lavender nurse, "Chief Medic Pururu, if you would be so kind I need to ensure our ship is in an operational order before we leave, so if possible would you check up on Giroro? I like to think he'd stay put in the dormitory, but if he isn't then give me a call and I will see if it is possible to locate him." He requested.

"Of course, I was having the same thoughts, actually." She smiled, a little sheepish.

"Good luck then, I think this mission will not be an easy ride, and the less bumps in the road the better." He said, and then walked away.

The sooner he got to the docking bay the better; he needed to have a word with Tororo before the team assembled.


	12. A Beckoning Storm

**. o 0 Chapter Twelve 0 o .**

Tools; inanimate objects used to get things done using the ingenuity of sentient beings who create them.

Inanimate objects were not the only things considered tools, however. Other creatures whether sentient or not would be considered as such as well, if provided.

Chief Medic Shupepe had no qualms about being a tool for the sake of getting certain things done, regardless of the circumstances he was one to do whatever it took to get the best-quality results in the shortest time possible, whereas his younger sibling, Kururu, had no intention whatsoever to be manipulated or played by anyone no matter what the situation was, not unless there was some sort of merit by the end of it that he was willing to cooperate, to an extent.

That was one of the many issues between the brothers, why they could never see eye to eye.

One allowed a certain level of control over their actions, while the other denied and rejected it whenever possible.

Recruit Rinono was concerned more often than not over her brothers bickering, never one to understand why they could not just accept each others reasoning and let things be. If Shupepe was fine with being a tool so long as he did not take a life then she was okay with it. Kururu was a rebel at heart and did not take well to being told what to do if he did not agree to the terms, it was just a part of who he was and she accepted it, she was okay with that, too.

With a small smile she mused, Kururu had always been so headstrong and confident despite his young age. It was funny to think that before his metamorphosis he was such a quiet and timid little thing, ever since his skin changed from blue to yellow he had transformed into someone so different, yet so alike his old self; it was disconcerting at first but she grew to accept it.

He was her brother and she will always love him regardless of his skin or attitude.

If she didn't love him then who would? They only had each other after all. Why they each thought the other was wrong and ill-guided in their own belief confused her; couldn't they just get along and respect each others different opinions? They were being such children…

With a heavy sigh she placed the metal plate down onto the table alongside the rest of the miscellaneous parts present. On a nearby recliner sat a gray skinned Keronian, fastened onto the seat to prevent any unwanted accidents from happening as well as to prevent him from leaving the room. His lone eye was closed and his subtle shifting made him seem half aware of his surroundings, but from the rise and fall of his chest she could tell he was resisting sleep.

Whether or not it had anything to do with the miscellaneous cables and wires attached into his cybernetic body, she could not tell, it was something beyond her expertise.

Earlier when she had been called to the Admiral's chamber, she came across the gray Keronian the first time where he was moving in a stiff pace, almost like the walking-dead. The gray one looked at her with his red on black eye with a gleam of something, a silent cry for help was all she could assume it to be. No more than some feet behind him Shupepe was following.

She noticed how they both looked messed up as if they had gotten into a fight, so she stopped to ask her brother what was going on. Shupepe gestured for her to save the questions for later and hurried after the half-metal soldier, where they made their way into the Admiral's chamber.

She was a bit bothered and alarmed at the cold look in her brother's eyes, but decided she didn't want to think about it and went about her way, sure Shupepe will explain when he had the chance. If he didn't, she will use other methods to get the information out of him, so for the time being she had to let him have his space. It didn't do much to settle her irritation, though.

Rinono was asked to wait in a nearby room and about thirty minutes after that Admiral Koii arrived, and then apologized about letting her wait. After a bit of talking, the Admiral expressed that she wanted Rinono to keep an eye on Kururu because he was acting difficult, so the pale orange Keronian smiled and offered to do her best to keep her little brother out of trouble.

Chief Medic Pururu was in the infirmary talking to Recruit Tororo who had just finished his session, so Pururu had asked her if she could guide him to the vessel in order to have him get acquainted to their new base, explaining that Chief Medic Shupepe was supposed to do that but he had left just earlier without an explanation. Rinono was more than happy to oblige.

During her trek with Tororo out of the infirmary and towards the ward leading to the upper floor, Shupepe arrived in a bit of a hurry and offered to guide Tororo to the vessel instead, requesting that she go back to speak with the Admiral Koii who wanted to address something she had forgotten to mention.

Unsure about the strange play of events but willing to comply nonetheless, Rinono left Shupepe with Tororo and made her way back to the Admiral's chamber, it was then when she was shocked and a bit terrified at the sight of the gray Keronian on the floor with his body in shambled pieces. The Admiral had her elite guards gather the pieces and the unconscious assassin and led him to the separate room the female was in earlier within the Admiral's chamber, and then Rinono was asked to keep the uninvited guest company until Shupepe returned.

Rinono had been in this room with Lance Corporal Zoruru ever since. He would drift from and into dream world every now and then, but would not say anything coherent. He would spend most of his time trying to resist the sleepy haze taking over his senses, calling the names of his team mates, but receiving no response from anyone whatsoever. Aside the cords attached to his body the female didn't really know what was going on with the strange man; she knew better than to ask.

Having nothing better to do Rinono spent most of her time fixing the dented pieces and cleaning the mess left behind by her brother, so at least Shupepe would be able to attach everything back in place when he got around to it.

It was only a good hour later that her brother came back and given her a very short explanation.

Shupepe had caught Zoruru lurking around the very edge of the Admiral's chamber and after questioned his presence, the assassin disregarded him and tried to walk out of it, but the Chief Medic was not having any of that and had chased after the gray one when he tried to leave. Of course, the assassin thought he was able to take down the pale blue one without a fight.

Little did Zoruru know what he was getting himself into.

Shupepe used his medical expertise to disable this fighter's more flesh-constructed side, connected the cybernetic side into the Admiral's motherboard by using a mod-chip in his possession, and was then remote-controlled back towards her chamber where she and the assassin had a long heart-to-heart talk. Alas he was stubborn so she had to drive her point home and wasted no time tearing his metallic side apart.

The gray Keronian looked like he was terrified out of his wits when she had seen him, it explained the situation too well. Regardless, the gray one had been in this little holding cell ever since, torn between sleep and staying awake. Rinono did not know why, she knew he had to be kept out of reach from the others until it was time for her to depart, something about preventing this fellow from contacting Lieutenant Garuru for some reason.

Admiral Koii had asked her to keep the gray one company until Shupepe returned to put him back together, expressing that for the safety of the crew and the success of the mission, the assassin needed to be kept silent. He will not be harmed if he stayed put. It would take a bit to reboot the system and erase certain tidbits from the assassin's mind without affecting the rest of his collective memory. It will not be a full brainwashing session, just enough to alter some things so he would not recall them. Admiral Koii, with a strange dark smile, also expressed that it needed to be done through a different computer system with a separate mainframe to avoid any loose threads, whatever that meant.

How long had this poor man been here she had no idea, he shifted from and into sleep a few times during her stay, sometimes murmuring lieutenant Garuru's name, other times muttering something about stepping over sugar and crust and how he didn't like the stuff stuck to his feet.

Assassins were usually freelancers and hired killers, yet this one seemed to hold a certain level of loyalty to the purple Keronian. His insistent need to get in touch with the captain made her skeptical of her current mission; what if what he had to say was important? Would it be so delicate that it might sabotage the whole mission if she let him go? Who was she to decide, since she had no clue what was going on? It was best to just let him be and ignore what he says, it made no sense to her whatsoever anyway.

During her downtime in idle wait, Rinono wondered what it would be like to be an assassin.

Being able to move with such speed and precision was an exciting thought, but she knew she was not built for that kind of performance, she was too slow and heavy. Ever since she was little most of her classmates excelled in physical feats of speed, and so did she when it came down to physical strength despite her gentle nature. Speed was her one of her athlete related issues since she could never get any position better than third of fifth place in a race.

Kururu, when they were kids, would always describe her as the tank due to how large and bulky she was, and how she could crash _through_ a wall instead of crash against it. She had lost the number of times she had smashed through a wall in her gym class after tripping over her own feet, the embarrassment she felt from such memories were upsetting.

At first she was offended at being called a tank, it wasn't like she wanted to be so dense-built! As time passed she grew to accept the term as a sort of sibling-teasing, a complement. She didn't like being so slow and heavy, but it would be a lie if she said it did not serve her well in her short training session in boot camp.

The Sergeant who was in charge had expressed how he rather found her physical build very fitting for a soldier, and she should take pride in her strength rather than shy about it. That was perhaps the first time she felt pride for being strong, something she had disliked for as long as she remembered.

Perhaps the Admiral was right, maybe her built was a gift and she just needed to find the right place to show her true colors. Sitting home doing daily routine was not achieving anything, she was built to be something more, and this was her chance to prove it.

Rinono smiled with the nostalgia. In her younger years she has wished if she was a little lighter or smaller and not so burly, so then maybe she wouldn't end up intimidating others so much. Sure she took pride into her body and physical build, but sometimes it tended to be such a hassle, especially when she was trying to score a date with a guy she found cute. Alas, often guys like to go to the small and cute, helpless ladies than the capable ones, she guessed it was probably for the best.

The Admiral had once comforted her, saying that Rinono deserved a man up to her level.

Perhaps someone like the Corporal? Who knew, thinking of a cute guy like Giroro sent a warm smile across her face; she thought he was pretty good looking. And those _eyes!_ Ooh… it just made her heart flutter! She had never seen such gorgeous eyes before, Giroro was very handsome.

But no! This was not the time to fancy boys! She had to focus on the mission because it was a priority. She might get a chance to talk to the Corporal later so for now she had to pay attention to the task at hand, it would not be appropriate to be caught daydreaming during work.

She clapped his face to snap out of the silly romantic daze, and then looked at the assortment of metallic pieces on the table again. She already cleaned up and fixed the main outer shell of the arm and leg, seeing they had been lobbed off. The torso carapace and shell were dented where Shupepe had kicked the poor guy where it hurt. From the angle and position of the dent she'd guess it might have been a kidney shot, and it must have hurt a lot, too.

The metal itself was infused with certain fibers that their names were lost to her, she could never keep track of all the scientific slogan of text her brothers tended to spout at one another. That, and it made her feel a bit too self conscious and somewhat inferior being the only one who didn't get any of it. Then again they often talked in gibberish just to taunt her because they very well knew she didn't understand any of it; as much as it upset her she grew to just tolerate or ignore it.

At any case, the metal was metallic yet allowed flesh-like properties like sense, being kicked in such a manner would hurt, and though no flesh-organs were damaged that was not to say the assassin didn't suffer some level of agony.

Speak of the devil, there was a low groan and the head of the gray invader tilted from side to side, looked up at her with a droopy look and then hung his head and closed his eye again, settling into his semi-conscience stupor again.

The gray skinned assassin was missing his cybernetic arm, leg and a good chunk of the torso that were placed on the table before her, leaving large opened areas where the flesh mingled with the machine revealing where one part ended, and where the other began.

She would guess his flesh must have gone through some serious treatment to adapt it to the metal body. How anyone could live like this? Cyber and bio-genetic engineering was beyond her understanding, Rinono found it both enthralling and disturbing. Did that mean this assassin was a creature of flesh or machine? Both, neither, or a split between? How was it possible to circulate blood and other liquids through the veins without killing him or altering his system? How did he not risk contamination if the body fluids got mixed into his blood cycle?

She had no clue whatsoever; that might explain why Shupepe was asked to handle this issue. Then again he was the reason this poor sap was in pieces, so it said a lot about the situation, too.

Torn out of her thoughts, the sound of a door opening came with a slight echo into the room. Rinono sat upright and turned to the entrance, seeing her pale blue brother seething to the point his face was all purple did not give her any positive feelings.

Her eyes widened in confusion and opened her mouth to speak, but the killer stare he shot her was enough to make her snap her mouth shut, teeth clicked together. Shupepe was very angry, and approaching him now was not an option.

Goodness, what did Kururu do _this_ time? Shupepe looked raving Mad!

In absolute and somewhat unsettling silence he picked up the bits and pieces of metal organized across the tabletop, rearranged and rebuild the arm and leg in less than five minutes, tweaked some wires, tightened some bolts, and then clicked and snapped them altogether to the torso chest-piece. The assassin gave a few weak yips and yelps, grunts and hisses of pain at the rough treatment yet did not fully wake from his daze; he must have been given some pretty strong sedative.

She did notice, however, that the red on black eye was turned off after a minute, it looked like the gray assassin had been shut down in order to be rebooted at some point during her daydreaming daze. There was a low beeping sound when Shupepe reached to something behind the seat and she could hear a click, the beeping stopped, then her brother plucked out some of the small wires, picked up a large cable and attached it in their place to the back of the unconscious Keronian's skull with a loud clank. There was a whirring sound followed by more clicking, the noise died down little by little leaving the most subtle hum in the end.

After that Shupepe picked up the large metal hunk he walked over to the unmoving assassin, and then went about putting everything back in place with more care and precision.

Rinono remained quiet, watching her brother work in near suffocating silence.

Once Shupepe was done he didn't even bother double-checking if the pieces were in place nor look at her, he just marched his way past her towards the door again and left. The pale orange female watched in dismay, well aware something terrible happened and whatever it was she was sure it had something to do with Kururu. Whenever those two fought Shupepe would always turn purple and march around like a bomb ready to burst, it was a sort of calm before the storm and she hated it.

She wanted to grab his hand before he left, she wanted to talk to him and yet knew he would not be cooperative, it was more likely he'll explode and lash out at her than talk it out, and she was not in the state of emotional calm to handle that, not yet. Worried and anxious about her siblings, Rinono figured she will just have to find a chance to talk to the two of them and figure out what's going on, this wasn't helping any of them and served to do more harm than good on the long run.

Alas she still had to stay here with the assassin until ordered to do otherwise, so she was stuck with babysitting duty for now.

She just hoped no one would get hurt by the time she got there.

**. .**

Chief Medic Shupepe was tense and angry. So many things were already cluttering one atop the other and making quite the mess. To make things worse, Rinono had no clue what was going on and it left a terrible taste in his mouth.

It had taken him some time to travel from and to one destination to the other, giving Recruit Tororo a quick tour around their flying base was short and curt because he had too many things playing ping-pong in his head, it was a bit hard to focus on the tasks at hand when the kid kept asking questions and requesting things.

Shupepe did find it amusing, just a little, when Tororo asked if he could lock the computers so Sergeant Major Kururu could not access them.

The pale Keronian was so very tempted to encourage him to do just that, alas he had to bite back the laugh and tell the tadpole that as much as he'd love someone dishing his brother a taste of his own medicine, Admiral Koii will be using the network as well and it will only give the orange one a sore backside if she caught him messing with the local area network. Tororo was displeased and huffed, but accepted the warning nonetheless.

Once satisfied that everything had been put in order, he had given Tororo permission to organize everything in the computer however he wanted so as long as he didn't lock up anything necessary, and then left to get other things done before anything nasty hit the fan when he weren't looking.

He didn't even remember what he was thinking of when he found himself marching down the ward; he glanced and saw Chief Medic Pururu, Lieutenant Garuru and his baby brother at the junction. With a determined frown to settle the differences before they boiled over into an abominable monster, he shot a look at Kururu who seemed to tense, Shupepe made his way to the infirmary office; he and Kururu were overdue to a very long talk.

If Kururu tried to flee the encounter then Shupepe would not hesitate to… prevent any sudden movements.

Clenched fists were balled tight as his arms swung back and forth to his sides, the march of an angry parent as one would describe it.

He didn't need to turn around since he could sense Kururu's stare tingling the back of his neck. Once in the office he waited until Kururu stepped past the threshold before popping out a headphone. Kururu glowered a little and popped a headphone out as well, getting ready for whatever it was his brother was planning. A few seconds later the loud clank and click came from the door, and Kururu did not need to turn around to realize he had been locked in. Shupepe meant business that much he could tell.

Flexing his fingers Kururu glowered at his sibling with a dark chuckle, "You looking for a fight?" his bent up frame straightened up with flexed arms, slightly parted legs and a puffed chest, a stance superior and smug.

"Not today, I'm afraid; though I'd love nothing more than to flog you one," Shupepe growled, aware of the sudden change in stance.

"Then why don't you get that flagpole out of your ass and tell me what's got your panties in a twist; we both got more important things to do than waste time here, right?" Kururu said, his grin darkening further and a malicious glint shone in the reflective surface of those thick, disk glasses, "I'm pretty sure this aint gonna be rainbows and sunshine, so lets cut the chase, yes?"

Chief Medic Shupepe pursed his lips and then flexed out his arms, took off his lab coat and threw it over the nearest chair, cracked his knuckles to loosen his fists and then took a fighting stance; with his sweatshirt and green camouflage pattern army pants he looked ready to rumble. He glowered at the other with a sneer, "Fine. In that case I am going to beat you up _so hard_…" he grumbled, letting that threat linger.

"Frankly," Kururu chuckled and popped out the other headphone before taking a battle stance as well, "I think that might just be the other way around."

The two stood no more than ten feet away from one another within the locked confines of the infirmary's office room. With the steel double-doors behind Kururu and the office desk behind Shupepe, neither Keronians had space to back up any further, leaving the open space of the office laid before them as some makeshift battlefield.

Though Shupepe knew this was not the time to dual, he really wanted to knock some sense into his bratty brother and smack some reason into that blockheaded skull of his. On the other hand, Kururu was just egging his brother for some fun; he knew he was gambling in this battle seeing he had not been in his best fitness level in months, but he figured he could take Shupepe on if his brother was willing to go forth with his empty threats.

While the two brothers were locked in the stare-down of their life, it was not the time to delve into any sort of roughhousing.

Elsewhere, a different brother was searching for the youngest member of his platoon.

Lieutenant Garuru looked up at the admirable size of the battleship they had been granted, allowing himself a moment to gaze in awe at the sleek design and noticeable well-diverse structure. He could tell from a mile away this ship had the ability to transform. From the cable and power lines, construction support cords, weapon position, light location, engine output and airship wing alignments, and a slew of many other various tidbits were evidence of that.

Although what it was able to transform _into_ was not clear to him. This ship was, after all, a prototype, so perhaps they were granted this vessel to test it out during the mission?

The child in him was excited; he couldn't wait to see what this baby could do!

Choosing to hold back the excitement to get things done in a timely manner, the lieutenant advanced further into the ship undeterred by any of the elite guards who were scouting the parameters, nor the workers who were tending to the ship's maintenance and repair needs.

In the very back of the garage and docking bay where he had entered, the purple Keronian ignored the massive number of crated stocked and stacked alongside the walls, and at the end of the garage space, just a few feet away from the stepladder leading up to the upper floor was a small room.

He noticed the door was open and the sound of keyboard clicking confirmed he had found his target. The smell of pastries and sweets caught his senses and he did not bother hiding the grin. He walked closer and leaned against the door frame, he continued to watch Recruit Tororo tapping and browsing through some files while gobbling down a few more donuts.

The lieutenant knew the salmon-red tadpole was a growing boy, but even he had to admit the kid had quite the appetite.

Lieutenant Garuru waited, patient and still, giving no hint of his presence to the oblivious recruit. Even when Tororo seemed to shuffle between work and play the tadpole did not even realize he was being watched. It was not until he popped some rather… _suggestive_ material onto the screen that Garuru arched a brow and cleared his throat. The purple one bit back a barking laughter at how Tororo almost jumped out of his skin with a screech of alarm, slammed the laptop shut and whirled around, face flushed and expression twisted in horrified surprise.

"Recruit Tororo, unless you'd rather have me 'parent lock' the system you would know better than to download questionable content on your work computer," he lectured, light and simple. When the tadpole's face turned a deeper shade of red and made no attempt to reply, the lieutenant sighed and crossed his arms over his chest, holding back an amused grin, "I will pretend I didn't see that; However! The next time I check the system those things had better not be there. Understood?"

"Pupu… yes sir, completely understood." Tororo murmured, not daring to meet the captain eye to eye.

"Good, then I believe this would be a good time to ask that you report your findings on the vessel thus far? The others will gather shortly and we need to confirm that everything is in operational, working order before we depart." He explained, his hands switched from his front to clasp hand in hand behind his back. "Also, had the request I've issued been completed yet? The bracelets need to be ready before the others get here." He added, curious to know where his little mastermind had gotten so far.

At that, Tororo hesitated for a moment before opening the laptop again, closing all the undesired windows and tabs, but at the tense tingles ticking the back of his neck he bit back a groan and deleted the unfavorable files; might as well lose them now than get his tail tanned for it later. Once the action was complete, he then typed a command into the machine and hit enter. Next to him a fair-sized box the size of a pizza box phased into view and the tadpole turned to pop it open, revealing silver-gray bracelets with the Keron Star Army Force insignia emblazoned on the inside.

"System primary configuration had been completed on all six bracelets, but I still need to do the secondary configuration after they're been worn in order to synthesize the signals and confirm body signatures, pu pu," he replied, taking a moment to select two bracelets and offered one to his captain, "This one is yours and the other is mine, I was ordered to keep them paired." He said

After the purple one picked up the item the tadpole continued, "I have to admit, I kinda expected them to pair you with Corporal Giroro, since Recruit Rinono and Chief Medic Shupepe were paired up, but then found out he was paired with the Old man," he chuckled, somewhat gleeful and amused. "Better him than me! I almost feel sorry for him now, puu pupu!" he laughed.

Garuru snapped the bracelet onto his wrist, wasted no time snagging the other from the tadpole to snap it on that smaller wrist as well, then grinned at the confused recruit, "You're in no different position, Recruit Tororo, and I rather find that quite amusing as well." He flashed a fanged grinned, almost menacing. "Do you think you would be feeling sorry for him now?" he said, tone a notch lower, almost dangerous.

Tororo could not explain the iceberg that had plummeted into the pit of his stomach, but he gave a near-petrified and slow nod at that, "Pu-… point taken." He almost squeaked.

"Good," Garuru straightened up, expression neutral and demeanor calm and collected as if the scenario that had just taken place never actually happened, "then we can start with the signal configuration, the sooner we get this done the better." He urged, almost holding back a laugh.

Tororo bit back the urge to curse a storm and turned back to his device. Lieutenant Garuru and his damn scary sense of humor, it served more to give Tororo a heart attack rather than laugh; Corporal Giroro's brother was spooky when he wanted to be!

Absorbed into the task at hand, Tororo continued to work on the programming available on his device, while his captain soon found a comfortable spot to sit next to him to read through the text that was being written. The two remained in silence for a little while before the conversation picked up, discussing tidbits, speculations and bouncing suggestions at one another regarding the properties of the ship, bracelets and other miscellaneous devices that were on board.

Garuru wanted to know how well they could manipulate them to their best advantage seeing how small, unique and versatile they were. Also, he wanted to see if Tororo was able to come up with anything interesting before the Sergeant Major got his hands on them. Though knowing Kururu, the yellow Sergeant Major would no doubt try to outdo the recruit in feat of programming. Garuru thought it was a good idea to pitch them at one another in a more competitive field with something they were both good at.

Tororo for some strange reason felt he rather liked the current setting, as much as Lieutenant Garuru intimidated him he had to admit the purple elder was a role model, it was to no surprise to the tadpole why Corporal Giroro looked up to his brother, even if their sibling relationship seemed somewhat strained to his own perspective, but at least it was not as bad as Sergeant Major Kururu and his own brother and sister, at the very least.

As a single child, Tororo didn't really know what it was like to have older siblings until he joined the platoon.

Despite the fact he was the closest to Taruru when it came to age, and to Zoruru when it came to tending to the assassin's technical needs, there was no denying he looked up to the others even if their expertise was in a much different field than his. Garuru's leadership and confidence, Pururu's headstrong passion, Zoruru's compassion despite his cold exterior, and Taruru's loyalty despite his dopy character, Tororo would sometimes allow himself a little smile.

It almost made them feel like family, and he didn't mind their flaws at all…

**. .**

A good hour earlier, Chief Medic Pururu had made her way to the dormitory in order to speak to Corporal Giroro. To say she was surprised at seeing the room wouldn't be too far off the mark; it looked far worse for wear than Tororo had told her!

Still, at the other side of the room and leaning against the lockers Corporal Giroro had his head low and buried in his arms, where he was hugging his knees and hiding his face from the world almost as if he was trying not to cry. Pururu felt a twinge of alarm at seeing her friend like that and hurried towards him, then hearing nothing that resembles whimpers or suggesting any sort of pain, she knelt to the floor next to him and called out in a near whisper.

"Giroro," she said, soft and easy, not wanting to surprise him.

The red invader's shoulders gave the most subtle of twitches before they squared, and the Corporal lifted his head. His eyes were closed and there was the faintest hint of wrinkles under his eyes signaling either physical or emotional exhaustion, but she couldn't really tell by this point. Weary, tired navy blue eyes turned to her, droopy and perhaps unclear. Giroro uncrossed his arms to rub his eyes and then blinked a few times to clear his vision before looking at her again.

"Pururu? What-…?" he rasped, voice thick from lack of use, "I think I fell asleep..." He said, almost with a hint of laughter.

She smiled, thinking he must have just coiled into himself to think and dozed off instead; Giroro would often do that when he was strained or stressed for long periods of time so she knew something must have happened, and she knew asking him directly was the wrong way to approach the topic, it was best to take it one step at a time for now and hope he will tell her about the issue soon.

"I came here in order to start the counseling session, Recruit Tororo and Lieutenant Garuru have already concluded theirs, only you and Sergeant Major Kururu remain," she explained and kept her clipboard close, not comfortable with letting him peer over or read any of her notes just yet; "Are you feeling up to the counseling session right now?" she offered, wanting to know if he felt like enduring the long conversation.

Giroro rubbed his head and stretched his arms, then rolled his shoulders and pushed to his feet, "I'll freshen up, give me a minute," he murmured and then headed towards the restroom.

While the Corporal tended to his personal business, Pururu gave the room a once over, dissatisfied with how much a mess it was. She put the clipboard down and began organizing the mattresses and pillows around the lower bunk bed for a more comfortable seat, tossing away the shredded blanket and torn pillow, then pulled the lone chair from near the deactivated computer and towards the bunk beds. She then dragged the small coffee table and picked up her clipboard and began to read through it while she waited.

Lieutenant Garuru, during his session, had expressed that though he was confident his little brother will do just fine in this mission admitted there was a tiny sense of discomfort niggling the back of his mind, he couldn't put words or feelings to it, but it bothered him and he did not really understand why.

Pururu latched onto that thought, it was her only lead to what was happening between the selected crew, they were all acting so strange.

By the time Giroro returned he looked more awake and aware, he walked back towards her and glanced at the made bed and her inviting smile. The Corporal looked a little reluctant yet complied by sitting down on the bed and then drew in a deep breath, exhaling though the nose he looked at her with a small smile. Pururu smiled back a little wider and then flipped through the pages, searching for his papers before pulling the pen from the back of the clipboard, and then clicking it once she started writing something.

"Now then, since we're settled, is there anything you'd like to share before we start?" she began and an inviting grin.

Giroro looked at her for a second then closed his eyes and thought, a faint twitch to his brows left him almost frowning, navy blue eyes turned to her in question, "Why was Dororo not included in this mission? Wouldn't having an assassin be a requirement?" he inquired, not helping a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Pururu was surprised at the question, she had never contemplated the thought of an assassin being part of the team even if it did seem like a natural option, then again the Admiral made it clear assassins were not needed despite the odds. The nurse thought for a moment before she shrugged, "I honestly have no idea, the Admiral had expressed that the mission does not require anyone from that class specification, so Lance Corporals Zoruru and Dororo had not been included." She shrugged.

Giroro scowled a bit then lowered his head a bit to prop his elbows on his knees and bury his face in his hands, rubbing a bit to sooth some of the discomfort wrinkling his face. The Admiral again, of course; she must have meant to exclude those two since they would be the only ones able to read the inscription on the tank without trouble.

That issue had been bothering him for a while, but now it refused to leave him alone because it all made sense…

Pururu pursed her lips, recognizing the motion of anxiety, suspicion and discomfort, Giroro was strained and paranoid and it was starting to take a toll on his nerves, "Perhaps the counseling is needed more than physical therapy right now, Giroro, you look like you have a lot of issues to talk about." She said as she brought his attention back to her, trying not to frown at his reluctant scowl and the gleam of hesitation in his eyes, "You will have to talk to me about anything that bothers you, if you're not sound for the mission I don't know what the Admiral plans to do about it, and I rather we not go down that path, okay?" she cautioned.

"I'm sorry, Pururu, but I'm really not sure I should be talking about half the things I'm dealing with right now," he muttered and rubbed his forehead, trying to ease the headache.

"Then that would be a stronger reason to talk them out, the longer you keep them in the harder it will be to express them later, Giroro." She lectured in a comforting tone, "We can take it as slow as you need; is there anything in particular you want to talk about?"

"Besides the fact that we've been assigned a top secret mission, without being told what it's about exactly, and not be given any backup by anyone with knowledge to the assassin arts? No, not really." He grumbled, irate.

"So the fact that Dororo was not included is why you're being a fussy baby?" she teased, fishing for a response.

"I'm not a fussy baby! I'm being serious," he grumbled with a fluster, taking the bait, "So far this Admiral is giving me nothing but bad vibes and I don't like it, if Dororo or the other guy-" he rambled, missing Pururu's correcting 'Zoruru,' comment, "-aren't going to be part of this mission, then I feel like I don't have anyone else to trust besides Garuru, and even then…" he paused, an afterthought came to mind, but he held it back, "and even then, I'm not sure if he'd be in a state where it would be safe to tell him," he admitted.

"So you're worried you may not be able to trust your leader?" she frowned, hiding her alarm the best she could; if Giroro himself could not trust his more able brother and leader then who was she to say Giroro's intuition was wrong? She knew more than anyone else when Giroro had a bad hunch about something, sooner or later it would turn out to be something very serious!

"He's my brother!" he shot aloud with a vicious sneer and pushed off the bed to his feet to tower over her in a menacing pose, a hand on his chest to express his anger at her offending suggestion, "I trust him with my life and I would gladly risk my life for him without a second though! My loyalty lies to him first and foremost! No one else!" he announced and flung his hands up over his head to express his irritation, "I'm just finding it real _hard_ to talk to _anyone_ right now!" he exclaimed.

The flare in his eyes caused the female to jump and his yelling caused her eyes to gloss over in what looked like surprised fear. Realizing what he had done a shattering feel of shame and guilt overwhelmed him, it plummeting into the pit of his stomach and he plopped back down onto the bunk bed and then closed his eyes, palmed his face and grunted, "Urgh, sorry… I really don't know what's wrong with me today…" he mumbled, dejected and tired.

Pururu looked at him with a hand on her heart to calm herself; she had never been yelled at by Giroro before and it unsettled her in more ways than one. She could tell her childhood friend had a very heavy weight placed on his shoulders, he needed to talk this out before it got the best of him. Sooner or later he was going to burst and he did not need this kind of stress during their mission.

The nurse calmed herself with a breathing exercise, deep thinking followed, considering the number of ways she could help Giroro feel better. Since the Corporal was in an emotional state, she knew she had to choose her words with care, if he was so strained that he almost exploded in her face then he really needed some sort of outlet.

The last thing this mission needed were three ticking bombs, Shupepe and Kururu were just as bad under their current unfriendly state.

She relieved a heavy sigh, it was clear her captain had his hands full with this bunch. As if dealing with Tororo's temper tantrums and Zoruru's constant disappearing acts weren't bad enough…


	13. Splintered Nails

**. o 0 Chapter Thirteen 0 o .**

Cages come in different sizes, in different materials, and more than realized, in different forms.

There are the cages we build to prevent things from getting out of hand, to restrict and contain things we do not wish to unleash onto the world. Cages built to secure and protect and prevent harm. Also, there are the cages we build for ourselves, whether to contain ourselves from the outside world or prevent the world from touching us, perhaps even to prevent an unfathomable danger from happening, or to hide away from what hurts us the most.

Kururu hated the cages he kept building around himself, not to contain himself but to filter who can approach him by reaching between the bars.

Why was it so hard for him to keep Shupepe and Rinono out of his cage? He could never understand. Whenever they'd come close the bars would rattle and drop like domino at their touch, or wilt like spaghetti stings no matter how hard he'd try to barricade them. A solid kick from Shupepe or a simple touch from Rinono, that was all it ever took for everything he had built to steel himself from the world to come tumbling down.

He didn't want to care about anyone, getting close to people often caused him grief since he would catch himself thinking or wondering about them, distracting him from the tasks at hand, it was more a hindrance than help, thus for years he has sought to toss that side of him out, no longer desired.

To a point, he had succeeded in detaching his emotional side from everyone around him. Save for one…

The only cage no one had yet been able to penetrate or rattle was the cage he built around his heart; only one person could touch that small container and Kururu knew for a fact that cage will never shatter, because the likelihood of his feelings being acknowledged by the one who held the key will never be, and as just the hapless bird he had caged within that small space will never see the light of day, the wane flutter of wings will never beat against the skies of freedom.

It hurt to think of it that way, but he didn't mind, it was a truth he learned to accept.

It was for the best he never brings himself forward to the hurt, no matter how tempting it would become from time to time. Physical hurt was something he preserved and lavished because it made him feel alive, being detached from his emotions for long periods of time would sometimes bring him into acknowledging his bleak existence despite his masterful mind, and the pain buzzing through his nerves was the reminder he could still _feel_, he simply chose _not_ to.

Oblivion, it was a much more desired bitter medicine than the hurt rejection and shattered feelings. He would rather be like this for the rest of his existence if it came down to it, too.

Sergeant Major Kururu closed his eyes and drew in a long, deep breath, needing to reel back the memories of the intoxicating fight he had just lost, the reason he hurt all over and yet felt nothing at all in the same time.

He and Shupepe were in a locked mental battle of focus with their eyes staring square at the other, undeterred and unwavering. Kururu felt the excitement tingling across his body and it took him a second to clench his frame for the battle.

He was so very tempted to try and shift into his battle mode, pump out the muscles and kick some serious hind, but since he hadn't brought his special 'gear' along he didn't want to risk a kick to the nuts. Though the gear consisted of just a pair of tight jeans and a belt, Kururu knew shifting his figure would not only alarm Shupepe, it'll also disturb him since the transformation included less desirable things to be seen, hence the skinny jeans.

Not that he wouldn't get a laugh out of flashing his brother, he knew Shupepe would be angry enough to hit him where it hurt just to get the point across.

Nevertheless Kururu decided to just brace himself and work on defensive; the last thing he'd want is Shupepe jabbing those damn fingers of his in any of his main nerve areas, or sailing that leather boot to his gonads. He would guess the Chief Medic would aim at the kidney, back and shoulders to disable his arms and legs, and perhaps stagger the nerves for a few seconds, and unless his brother was feeling very malicious he might get a hit across the arms and sides as well for a full paralysis.

Neither of them moved for what felt like ten whole minutes, it was then Shupepe's patience ended.

He bolted towards the yellow Keronian with fists balled and two fingers extended and ready to stab. Kururu blocked the first distracting blow aimed at his shoulder with his forearm, and dodging the actual attack aimed at his abdomen by curving his frame sideways, too keen on such tactics in close quarter combat for a multitude of reasons.

It's not like it had anything to do with repeatedly watching multiple recordings, hours upon hours long of the hard-boiled Corporal's combat training sessions in the reality dome during practice. Nope, not at all…

Kururu shoved the blue one away from his breathing space with a swift kick, and absorbing the impact the Medic was pushed back a few feet and aimed a roundhouse kick that Kururu blocked. The yellow one then aimed a loose kick to the side which Shupepe dodged, thus being pushed further away from Kururu's too-close-for-comfort quarters, therefore giving the yellow one more working space to fight.

The Blue one bolted to the side and grabbed a vas, he threw it at his brother to distract him for a moment while he ducked behind the couch. Kururu grabbed the vas with ease and threw it aside, expecting Shupepe to tackle him with his hands full, but instead found his brother was out of sight, missing the act of him lurking behind the couch. He expected his brother to either grab something else to throw at him, but he'd admit he didn't expect Shupepe to outright kick the thing towards him!

The sofa's legs gave a loud screeching sound as it was kicked with expert precision, it slid across the floor and Kururu jumped as high as he could to avoid being pummeled by the large cushioned seat, so missing its target the large piece of furniture slammed against the wall with a loud 'thwack!' before bouncing a bit on impact, and then toppling back with the backrest to the floor. Kururu was distracted for a second when he turned to look at the couch mid-air, catching the boot prints on the back of the recliner before it hit the floor, and realizing in mere seconds just how powerful that kick must have been, so by the time he whirled around to face his brother Shupepe was running right towards him.

The Medic tried to jab the points alongside Kururu's calf seeing it was the closest pressure points he could reach from his drooped angle of approach, but the younger brother in an inward bout of panic was swift to spring out his other foot, kicking the wrist where it hurt. Flung back with a hiss of pain Shupepe watched Kururu's feet hit the floor in a defensive state before jumped back up with a back-flip and landing right next to the fallen couch.

He could read Kururu had gotten tense when he realized what he had gotten himself into, and the blue one smothered a pleased grin.

Yes, Kururu should be very, very afraid!

With a boost of determination, Shupepe darted at him with a sweeping kick and his yellow brother jumped, swinging a foot for a spin-kick to the head. Shupepe blocked it with both arms and was just about to spring out at the yellow one when he was met with a swift punch to the kisser!

Shupepe didn't even know how Kururu was able to spin around fast enough to switch from a kick to a punch, but it was a successful hit nonetheless.

The hit was solid and it sent him skidding across the floor to thunk his skull against the wall, a painting that was hung there clobbered him on the head earning a giddy laugh from the yellow one. With an enraged sneer Shupepe hopped back to his feet and ran across the marble floor to punch some lights out, when in real he was hoping to trick Kururu into baring his side so he could paralyze him already. Alas Kururu saw right though it and the block sent the blue one ricocheted across the room.

Shupepe, undeterred, jumped in an evasive maneuver when Kururu started throwing books at him from the nearby bookshelf, he landed on top of the desk. The impact of his leather boots hitting the tabletop sent the stationary kit upwards. Not one to waste another second, the blue Keronian grabbed all and any stationary objects hovering around him and threw them at his brother across the room.

Kururu, fresh out of books, grabbed the coat-rack that was nearby and used it like a staff to fling back and deflect all projectiles, then plucked off the upper part of the rack and threw it at his brother piece by piece. Shupepe had picked up a pair of scissors and used them like short dagger-blades to block the pieces thrown at him as well, and in a clear sign of irrational irritation he flung the blades at his brother in a fit of rage.

Kururu actually tensed for a second and blocked the blow with the staff, the loud 'Thock!' of the scissors hitting the pole of wood was hard to miss.

The Sergeant Major would admit, a tiny part of him was surprised his brother was angry enough to _actually_ throw such a thing at him.

That short absentminded moment was more than enough for him to miss the blue figure jumping off the desk, hop behind it only to fling it across the room with another killer kick. Kururu threw the coat rack and jumped, doing a forward kick that was acute and solid enough to split the desk in two, sending wood and paperwork scattered across the office. Shupepe did not want to give his brother the chance to recover from that move and kicked the wall, using the chair like a surfing board he skated towards his younger brother again.

Kururu, who hadn't had the time to hit the floor after his jump let out a squeaked, mouse-like '_Kii!_' when he felt a series of rapid, sharp stabs hitting the broad length of his back and sides. Shupepe had managed to successfully jab his fingers into the nerve points and blocked some of Kururu's inner energy at last. The blocking technique stung and hurt like hell, and the Sergeant Major knew this was only the beginning. After a few seconds he felt numb and his movements became clumsy because the lockdown of his energy started affecting his leg.

He tried to flex and get the hell out of battle range, but instead sent himself spiraling across the room with his shaky legs to land with a thump over the toppled couch, bent over the seat. Kururu felt numb, heavy and cold all over, and the spots where he had been jabbed felt like someone repeatedly poking him with a cold pole of metal. No matter how he tried to push up his body would spasm and flinch yet refuse to comply, the paralysis was taking over in seconds. He knew it will take a few more minutes before he'd lose the ability to control his body altogether, when that happens he will be under Shupepe's mercy, or lack of…

When left alone after being paralyzed the energy would remain blocked for about an hour before he would regain gradual control of his senses, but he had no intention of becoming a couch potato that long, paralyzed or not, he struggled against the heavy feeling in hope or finding a limb that responded to his need to move.

Or at least, that was what he was thinking when he tried to push off the couch with his limp arms, only then he felt the most horrible yet delicious sting of pain strike his unprotected backside with a sharp '_smack!_' and he knew, Shupepe had not been joking when he said he was going to _flog_ him. The yellow one peered over his shoulder just enough to see Shupepe had found a flat wooden ruler and was flogging his flank a good one, just as promised.

Kururu felt his rear burning with the heat of a thousand suns, and it was the only thing he could feel considering the rest of his body refused to move and was incapable of sense. He'd bed a deck of nudie magazines Shupepe staggered him into this state on purpose! Now, due to being numb in most of his body he didn't complain at the punishment; rather he decided that he found it kind of kinky. He knew if he said his thoughts aloud his brother would stop, so it was best to let the blue one vent all his anger however he pleased, Kururu didn't mind at all.

After his punishment had been fulfilled, and his brother had flogged him until his arms had gotten tired, the two had collapsed for a very long time. When Kururu was able to feel his fingertips again, guessing they'd been there for at least an hour as estimated, he managed to crawl off the couch and hit the floor with a thump and grunt of pain, ignored it and then pushed to sit up to prop his back against the couch and press his searing hot bottom against the cool soothing floor.

When Kururu opened his eyes minutes later, a pair of tired eyes that belonged to a blue face looked down at him. The pale blue Keronian standing before him scowled, a hint of concern in his eyes and a missing tooth shone when he managed a weak grin. "I have to admit, your left hook had gotten better," he laughed, then winced and touched his face where he had been struck, an ache blistered through his muscles making him grow teary eyed.

"Kuku… I'd love to return the compliment, but you _still_ hit like a girl," the yellow one laughed, then winced as well.

Shupepe huffed and sat down next to his brother, agile fingers jabbed the yellow one around the shoulders and hip, unlocking the energy gates and nerves he had disabled during their dual, giving his younger brother the ability to regain control of his body, and perhaps blast him with the overwhelming sensory overload of being able to feel everything at once again. Kururu flopped back to thrash and twitch in agony with a few squeaking chips of pain, floundering like a fish out of water with the feeling of a thousand needles pinpricked him everywhere at once.

Though that may have been a spiteful move from his dark streaked side, Shupepe had no regrets whatsoever. "So says the guy who _swings_ like a girl," the Medic muttered back a minute after Kururu settled down with a groan, and then felt his still sore face, checked the missing tooth and then couldn't hold back a chuckle, "Damn, remind me to never get in a fight with you any time soon; your knuckles keep getting more and more dangerous every time we fight. My face is going to hurt for weeks!"

"Kukuu! Then consider it a loving reminder from me to you," the yellow one chortled despite the agony coursing through every inch of his being. Kururu had gotten sweaty and flushed from the amount of heat searing through his muscles, but by damn he wouldn't trade this feeling for anything! He enjoyed feeling so alive. A minute later when he could feel his arms again, he reached down to sooth his hurting seat and winced, "Ku… I think I'll be feeling this for a while, too." He chuckled.

"You deserved it," Shupepe grumbled, and then his expression softened a bit, "Although I guess I may have gone out of line back there,"

"Oh I dunno, with your wrist work I thought it was kinky," the Sergeant Major laughed at his brothers demoralized reaction, so he laughed some more and with a stiff, crick and crack of joints, he hissed and sat up, ignoring the aching throb beating across his flushed body, "I think you'd make for a very nice Dungeon Master," he teased.

Shupepe's face became flustered and his eyes widened in embarrassment, so he shoved the yellow one away, "What! No way! I'm not as perverted as you are, you creep!" he laughed, not at all insulting since he and Kururu shared only one hobby of interest; _Women!_

"So says the guy who has multiple boxes under the floorboard just for playboy magazine collection! Organized by date, I might add!" Kururu laughed and punched the other on the shoulder, "Admit it, you've been hitting on anything that moves ever since we were kids! You're more a creeper than I am." he taunted.

"Well at least I'm not the one with the hots for his teammate! The way you were sizing up the Corporal made you look like a freakin' cannibal!" Shupepe shot back, laughing. "I've seen you get hung-up on a lot of things, but I've never seen such a clear sign of desire; you've never even looked at curry that way and that's saying something!" he exclaimed, arms crossed.

But then there was an awkward silence, Kururu's expression blanked and his features almost paled, the corner of his mouth twitched and it was anything but a smile.

Shupepe felt a cold tingle of sweat build over his skin and he knit his brows in concern, "Kururu…?"

"That's absurd," Kururu retorted with a tone quieter than usual, and the chuckle that followed was wane and forced, "I don't have the 'hots' for anyone. I just like to mess with him. You need to get your eyes checked, bro." He stated, the tone a notch higher than usual.

Shupepe stared for a long minute before he heaved a heavy sigh, "Kururu, I'm a psychiatrist, and trust me when I say you're lying through your teeth even if you don't realize it." He murmured, concerned that his brother was having some sort of emotional denial, not uncommon since Kururu was strange like that. "It's okay if you like him, I'm just… I _admit_ I'm surprised you've shown interest in _anyone_, much less another guy for that matter, even if it seems you yourself hadn't realized it yet." he tried to laugh with a casual shrug, "I could have sworn you were only into girls, though."

Kururu rubbed his flushed-orange face, "Shupepe, whatever you're playing, stop it, it's not funny." He snarled and tried to keep himself together.

The Medic arched a quizzical brow and tilted his head, then started reading his brother's body language just to be sure he wasn't getting the wrong signals. Alas, no matter how many times he looked it over, he could tell his sibling was doing it more out of need to control his sense of abject embarrassment and humiliation rather than hide being upset.

Yup… Kururu was in denial, there was no doubt about it.

"I'm not playing for anything, Kururu." Shupepe said, calm and collected, and then pushed off the floor to brush his outfit before offering his brother a helping hand, "I'm just saying it as it is, or would you rather I let you flounder blindly like before until it hits you in the face like last time?" he argued.

Kururu scowled and hugged his knees, refusing the hand and ignoring the ache on his rear, "I know what I'm doing and I don't need your mind games messing things up." He snarled.

Shupepe frowned, "So you're aware of your feelings towards Corporal Giroro?"

Kururu said nothing at first, drew in a deep breath and sighed, then unwrapped his arms to push off the floor, hissing at the cold pinpricking tingles of sensation buzzing through his revived nerves. "This is not any of your business, stay out of it. I mean it!" He growled, and then turned to his brother with a scowl, "I'm man enough to admit that, _Yes_, I Do like the Corporal, he doesn't feel the same way and he had made it clear he doesn't want anything to do with me, so don't try anything stupid, alright?" he sneered.

"You've literally confessed?" Shupepe frowned, knowing his brother had a thing for playing with words and manipulating the truth.

Kururu scowled a little more, "I made myself clear, he didn't like it, end of story."

The Medic argued, "So you never actually, _literally_ confessed?"

"Why the Fuck should I Confess to someone who had made it Obvious that they Can't Stand Being Near me? I'm not _That_ desperate!" Kururu snapped and flung out an arm, shoving his brother back with a good punch to the shoulder, "Besides, that idiot is so Daft he wouldn't Know a confession if it was Rammed Up his Ass! _Literally!_"

Shupepe felt the dull ache on his shoulder and sighed; although this wasn't how he had hoped the counseling session would go, he knew he had hit the right cords and Kururu was letting loose the pent up aggression; alas it seemed the issue was far more sexual frustration than emotional. His brother was venting at the very least which would serve to make things easier to relate to once they start the mission. On another hand, Kururu was not usually this loud and expressive which served to make Shupepe anxious; his brother was trying so hard to deny how he felt, and though the reasoning made a lot of sense it still bugged the Medic how his brother was being stubborn.

A heavy silence lingered between the two, a silence that lasted for as long as the discomfort stretched between them.

The hands of fate played the scene once more when there was a loud clanking knock on the door and a voice from the other side, demanding they open up and explain what the ruckus was about. Once recognizing Rinono's concerned voice from beyond the door, as much as Shupepe didn't like the idea of having to explain how the trashed office was reduced into such a state, he knew weaseling his way out of this was not going to be easy, and trying to pin the blame on Kururu was not a smart move either.

He rolled his shoulders and went to pick up the discarded lab coat, then threw it at his brother. The last thing Kururu needed was someone noticing his bruised body or flushed rear; Rinono will chew Shupepe if she found out he had hit their baby brother, and she could flog him much worse for it, too.

It was times like this Shupepe wondered if it would have served him a less likely chance to gaining blood pressure issues if he wasn't related to either of them, he needed a break from all of this…

**. .**

Chief Medic Pururu and Corporal Giroro walked through the ward heading out of the dormitories, and towards the junction that connected the three sections of the floor together. They needed to regroup with the rest of the team members aboard their new vessel, and on the way they needed to find Recruit Rinono, Chief Medic Shupepe, and Sergeant Major Kururu who had not been in touch with the rest of the team for a while.

When they got to the junction however, it was there that they found Rinono with worry in her eyes giving her two battered and bruised siblings a heated lecture.

Giroro hurried past the lavender nurse towards the trio, his eyes in concerned navy blue were fixed on the much abused Sergeant Major, "Kururu! What the hell happened? Are you two all right?" he demanded, an expression torn between irritation and distress gleamed in his eyes. He noticed that Shupepe no longer the one wearing the lab coat and Kururu had it wrapped around him pretty close, as if shielding himself from a chill.

Had the two been attacked when no one was looking? They looked like they had gotten into quite the scuffle!

Kururu stared at him for a very long moment, expression placid and neutral. After a second his brows almost knit, he squared his shoulders and shrugged while shoving his hands into the lab coat pockets, and Pururu would swear the reaction almost looked bashful. Kururu managed a tiny chuckle before he spoke, "Oh, nothing to get your knickers in a twist, senior. Dumbbell over here and I just needed to have a _talk_," he chortled and elbowed his much bruised brother.

Shupepe yelped and grabbed his side with a pained hiss, flashed a menacing scowl at the yellow one for hitting a spot he knew ached, and had no qualms smacking his little brother backside the head to show his displeasure, "Who you calling names, four-eyes?" he growled.

"**Enough! **Both of you!" Rinono shouted loud enough to make everyone else at the junction jump in their skin, including the elite guards who stood nearby. They were all startled at her angry tone, "I swear if we weren't pressed for time…" she glowered and whatever she said after that was intangible. Her voice dropped into a much lower muttering whisper while still brandishing white and pointy fangs. Rinono was near the end of her wits with her brothers, and it was showing.

Giroro coiled back just the slightest bit when she reeled around and started walking away. He was taken aback by her vicious looks and something in the back of his mind was brewing, perhaps even growing interested in her. Noticing the dazzled gleam in the red Keronian's eyes following his angry sister, Kururu managed a wane yet forced chuckle and nudged the Corporal before limping ahead, soon followed by a trudging and sulking Shupepe.

Giroro stood there and rubbed his arm, not sure what Kururu meant by the nudge and half wondering if he really wanted to know. He turned to Pururu in question and she shrugged, having no clue what all of that was about either.

Nevertheless, with the four remaining members reunited, the group was led by the elite guards who had arrived with Rinono towards the docking bay of the Grand Star in order to locate their ship.

It was to no surprise Lieutenant Garuru was at the back of the spaceship giving orders to some of the men, and then turned to greet the arriving crew.

It didn't take him more than a second to look at the battered brothers, glanced at Rinono who was fuming in silence and smothered a wary grin; those two had gotten into trouble and the guilt in their features was more than enough to warn him not to ask. The purple captain gestured for them to go on ahead into the ship, explaining he will catch up to them at the bridge in a few since he still had some preparations to complete before being set to sail.

The group was led by another guard towards the ramp that took them into the ship from the main entrance. It was directly linked to the middle platform floor where their dormitory was located. The pathways inside the ship were a bit narrow compared to the rest of the corridors as only two members could walk side by side, Giroro had noticed, but he chose to ask about that later.

Rinono and Shupepe were walking up front with Kururu and Giroro behind them, while Chief Medic Pururu remained with her captain when he asked to have a word with her. Giroro was a little tense she might tell Garuru too much of what he had confessed during the session, but since she had promised him everything they had talked about would remain private he trusted her and looked away, trying to keep in pace with the others.

Pururu as well watched the group leave, she was aware Sergeant Major Kururu had yet to undergo his examination sessions, whereas Giroro had only completed his counseling, or as much as she could consider completed, at the very least. Her friend had held back a lot of issues that plagued his mind and was much too paranoid to share with her, that much she was aware, but at least their conversation managed to unknot some of the loose ends flailing around his tired mind.

She was a little hurt Giroro couldn't confine in her, but respected that he felt too high-strung to share some things. After all, she was not taking any part in this mission so telling her wasn't going to serve any good, especially since she was not going to tell anyone about it. He will either just have to deal with them as they come and talk about them with Garuru, or keep them bottled in and hope they won't eat him from the inside.

Back in the ship, the guard guiding them expressed that though they were supposed to be given a tour of the ship, things have been pushed ahead of schedule so they were all a little behind, thus he cut the tour and led them in a direct line to the upper floor and to the main bridge.

The guard opened the door and urged them to go ahead, the Admiral was waiting for them.

When they arrived, Tororo was in the navigator seat and in the process of being guided through a system calibration program of sorts by the Admiral herself. The guard who had escorted the team entered after them and closed the door, at seeing his mistress distracted he cleared his throat, awkward, and then announced the team has arrived. Admiral Koii raised a hand to signal that they hold up for a minute, she was busy.

She had her back to the team a good three minutes after the guard had announced their arrival, still busy showing the tadpole how to configure the options that appeared on his massive screen. Tororo was a little nervous at being so close to a high-ranked officer, who kept treating him like a baby, it took a lot of self restraint not to lash at her. He represented the Garuru platoon since his captain was not here to take lead of the situation, so he had to show this woman he was a dependable recruit!

Once satisfied that the young tadpole had learned the basic ropes with the system, the Admiral straightened up, ignored the crick in her back and turned around to the four members waiting for her at last.

Giroro could not hold back the apprehension to finally come face to face with Kururu's tutor, and their leader in this mission. He swallowed the large knot in his throat, he watched her turn around as if it was done in slow motion.

"Greetings, it is truly a blessing to have you all here," she said in a quiet and calm tone, a hint of a smile to her elderly voice, "I am Admiral Koii, and I will oversee your investments in this mission, I expect nothing less from some of the Keron Army's best troops." She nodded her head a bit low, almost a bow.

Giroro and the others all saluted her with a similar yet lower bow in response, showing her great respect due to both her age and rank.

Except for Kururu, who was only facing her half way from where he was standing behind the Corporal.

Unaware of Kururu behind him being a defiant brat, Giroro straightened up like the others had and then took a moment to take in her appearance.

She wasn't too large in bulk or size, rather she looked small. She wore a green colored uniform laced with ocean-gray he had never seen before, her helmet had the combination of horns and headphones, like that of any other Admiral within the force but with a spin of its own. She wore large goggles of sorts that obscured most her face. The gloves, boots and outfit, including the cape and helmet hid most of her skin from view, but Giroro could tell from under the edge of her goggles her skin was a peach-orange shade, or at least that was what he could discern in the slightly dim lights of the bridge. The only source of light available was coming from Tororo's screen behind her, and even then it was panning from the bottom and beaming upward, masking her face in shadows even more.

Taking in the details he took notice of the small scar marring the side of her mouth, the cut started somewhere from her chin and stopped just a little under her eye where the faded tip of the wound pointed to the center of her face. He could see three stitches, and from the looks of the way it was colored it was a very old battle scar. The downcast lips were wrinkled at the sides, showing age as well. He could tell this lady didn't smile often, either.

"Kururu," came the Admiral's voice, almost teasing, "aren't you going to say hello?"

Giroro blinked and turned to the one hiding behind him, but the yellow invader muttered a low 'tch,' and waved a dismissing hand, he did not bother showing any respect for the woman.

Giroro grit his teeth and nudged him with his elbow, wanting to hint that the Sergeant Major was being very rude! Just because they couldn't stand each other didn't mean he could show disrespect to the elderly. This was not the proper way for a soldier to act!

Much to his surprise, Kururu gave a small yip of pain and hugged himself clutching the coat that covered him, before elbowing the Corporal in the back much harder than necessary, digging his joint into the back of the Corporal's ribs and sending him forwards to almost crash into their superior. Giroro managed to upright himself mere inches from the Admiral with a stifled yowl of pain, grabbed his side and then shot the snickering yellow imp a sneer.

He had half a mind the thrash the little brat, but realizing he was so close to the elderly woman threw all thoughts of payback out of mind. Fumbling, the Corporal backpedaled back in place and bowed in apology, cursing himself for getting jumpy. He needed to keep himself together in front of the Admiral as a representative of the Keroro platoon, since Kururu did not seem to care what the superiors thought of the Keroro Platoon so far, someone had to fix their already blemished reputation.

At least Garuru was not here to mourn such a humiliating action from his brother; Giroro was embarrassed at the thought.

"Children, settle down," the Admiral called in a more dominant tone, her hands moved to clasp behind her back she gave the crew a once over before looking at the yellow cranky invader. "Sergeant Major Kururu, come to my office please, I believe we need to talk." She requested and made to walk across the bridge towards a door at the far side of the room.

The Corporal watched as Kururu was about to say something, but then Rinono shot her brother a menacing look. Giroro almost laughed at how the yellow invader shrank down with a visible flinch to avoid his angry sister's vicious glower, a hint of sweat built on his yellow skin. Kururu threw his hands up and muttered '_Fine!_' in a hushed tone before he huffed, and then followed after the Admiral with low intangible grumbles under his breath.

"I swear to Keron, if he starts a fight with the Admiral, **I** will be the _least_ of his problems!" Rinono snarled and crossed her arms over her chest, shoulders squared, her foot tapped on the floor in a clear sign of irritation.

Whereas Shupepe tried not to snicker in glee, Giroro watched her for a second, not sure what to make of the whole situation.

His side hurt like hell, Kururu had jabbed him in a very tender spot and it was starting to throb more and more. It would become easier to tolerate in a few minutes but it still bothered him; why was Kururu acting so passive-aggressive? Wasn't that Giroro's role?

At least the meeting with the Admiral couldn't have gone any worse, now they had the chance to get acquainted with their work area.

Giroro did not want to waste time figuring out which from which so he headed towards Tororo's seat and looked at the screen, he observed the recruit script commands to the main engines to secure their emergency trigger as well as limit their range.

Tororo glanced at him for a second then chose to ignore him, the salmon-red invader continued what he was doing albeit on a slower pace, taking a minute to double-check all his input codes and scripts to make sure he got them right; Tororo hated switching from one keyboard to the other, getting acquainted to the keys would always take time to get familiar with it without pausing every now and then to make sure he wrote things correctly.

"The Gatling gun requires a password?" the Corporal spoke in confusion and glanced at the recruit, "Why a password? Isn't it a mandatory weapon?"

"Pupu, the Admiral told me the security hadn't been finalized in the auto-respond of some of the weapons, so for the sake of not triggering anything by accident she locked everything up, she'll unlock them when we're ready to depart." He answered, taking a moment to flex his fingers and stretch his arms, "I think you might also like to know your gallery had been packed and loaded in the storage, but the Admiral said you don't need old fashioned junk, she wants you to use the new stuff instead," he chuckled and flicked a switch.

A second later the screen on one of the nearby seats that was set in front of Tororo's seat blipped and came to life. Hover screens appeared and the seat split into two and then to four, forming a large platform with what looked like an air-assault navigation deck. A large triad panel formed accompanied with two keyboards and a large control pad of sorts in the middle. The seat widened and one of the arm rests lowered down to reveal a third keyboard and an option screen.

"And that, Corporal, is yours; pu pu. The Admiral had it custom made, too." The recruit chuckled.

Giroro would swear his heart stopped. His eyes bugged out and air escaped his lungs as he could not believe what he was seeing!

It was the state of the art, streamlined '9072 Keron' battle Bee! This had not yet been released in the militia due to it being a prototype designed exclusively for aerial combat, remote controlled from within a separate battleship. Meaning, he could have a whole flock of bumble-bee swarm controlled from this portable pilot cockpit without risking the passenger's life in case of high number of foes, or heat seeking missiles. When using the correct options he would be able to transport this deck into an actual and smaller plane, meaning there was a one-passenger ship on this spacecraft prepared for possible one-on-one aerial combat outside the mother-ship.

Shupepe whistled after he saw the versatile device finish taking form before them, "Well _damn!_ The Admiral is giving you the Queen Bee? She must really _like_ you!" he clapped the Corporal on the shoulder, "Trust me when I say this is by no means a mundane thing, the Admiral designed this herself, so be careful with it, it's her baby." He informed in a more hushed tone, and then gave the Corporal a light shove and grinned, "Now get to it and don't be shy! Show me what you can do." He laughed.

Giroro staggered in his step before he turned from the Medic to the recruit, and Tororo shrugged in response, so the Corporal swallowed aloud, the thick knot of apprehension and excitement made it hard to breathe. Steeling himself for the nerve wrecking experience he walked closer and placed his hands on the backrest, giving the control panels and screens waiting for his arrival a long, studying look.

The Corporal felt his heartbeats hammering in his chest, he couldn't even tell if he was terrified out of his wits or too excited for words.

Slow and easy, almost dreading the thought this is all a dream and he'll wake up if he got too comfortable, the Corporal sat in the pilot seat and felt his heartbeats settle down after a few minutes. He was not waking up, this was not a dream, this was the real deal! Swallowing the thick knot in his throat again he surveyed the screens to read what was written on each one before he started configuring everything and customizing his settings.

There was a tall leap in technology when it came to weapons, and if it hadn't been for his constant contact with Kururu the red invader would believe he never would have been able to keep up with all of it. He had lost track of how much more advanced Keron was due to being on Pekopon for too long. Also, though he understood the Admiral's point of view with not wanting to use his old weapons, he knew better than to discard them, they could still be useful in their own way, he just had to see if it was possible to integrate the two types together and hope they're not too outdated.

So absorbed into the task of working through the system to learn all he could before they depart, Corporal Giroro did not notice the attention he was getting from the remaining three members and overseeing guards stationed nearby.

Where Tororo looked placid and perhaps hoping for a distraction, he actually had to admit the Corporal was pretty good with programming, even if he wasn't as fast or complex as the Sergeant Major and himself.

In fact, Tororo spotted a code or two he had not paid attention to before, Giroro pocketed them between two or three other codes where they would not be noticed in terms of hacking because they would be within the body of the backup system instead of the security, thus enveloping them in the script that intertwined the security with the emergency backup system so if someone did try to pluck them out or break them the action would trigger the warning that the security had been breached.

It was a smart move, Tororo would admit, but then rolling the code in his mind for a moment he was able to figure out two or three ways to weasel out of triggering the warning. Nevertheless, he read over the code a few more times to memorize it; he might be able to make use of it sometime even if it was not a strong one.

While Tororo watched in hopes of learning any more codes or tricks he could make use of, since the way he and Kururu built their codes were different than Giroro's, the Corporal was too absorbed into his task to pay attention to the others. The more he worked around the system the lighter his heart fluttered. This baby was amazing! There was so much he could work with and he had no idea how much time he had to mess around and see what he could make.

The grin on his face and the pearly white fangs were a clear sign of excitement, Shupepe and Rinono did not need to be mind readers to know the Corporal was having a grand time. Shupepe just hoped everything will go well on the long run, the device was a prototype after all.

Other than that, he glanced at the doorway where the Admiral vanished with Kururu, concerned that nothing exploded yet.

Were those two being civil, or had they knocked each other out so fast none of them heard it? There was no answer, he could only wait…


	14. Oblong Trails

**. o 0 Chapter Fourteen 0 o .**

War. The battle to end all battles, the fight that pitches fighters against one another for the cause they believe in.

To serve, to protect, and to provide a better world for those who wish to live in an Utopian heaven of everlasting wealth and prosperity.

Lieutenant Garuru looked at the monstrosity of a spaceship for a very long time, admiring its build and design, unable to tear his eyes away from its commendable structure. Whoever came up with this prototype was a genius! The ship's codename was the 'the Keron Army's Black Sparrow' and the Admiral preferred to refer to it as just Sparrow, saying something about the Pekoponian birds helping inspire her with the design.

Although when and why she had gone to Pekopon was a different subject, Garuru worried if she had been looking at the Keroro platoon's progress without their knowledge. As Admiral she would be able to get away with a lot of things without being detected. The purple Keronian wondered if that was the case, Giroro's efforts would be put into perspective if she was going to judge them individually or as a group; his little brother had been hardworking through the past few years.

Although the lieutenant felt a little bad for having to ask Tororo to hack into the Keroro Platoon's databank every few months just to check on their progress, he was also forced into doing so. Sergeant Keroro was so tardy he never submits his reports on time, which left others no choice but to come over to collect the data. How someone as absentminded as Keroro became Sergeant was beyond him, he guessed as admirable as his leadership skills were he was a bit hard to take in as a person.

Nevertheless, his friendship with Giroro had reared his brother into a reliable warrior, and for that Garuru was grateful.

Regardless, looking back at the gigantic spaceship he noted the wingspan was perfect and maneuverable in narrow spaces, because it allowed the ship a perfect speed while sustaining the bulk in the center, and the wings could be adjusted to be tucked to about thirty to forty percent of their maximum length allowing passage in small spaces as well. The engines were placed alongside the circular frame of the backside allowing possible directional adjustments if speed is ever required.

Earlier when he was reading the basic construction manual of the spacecraft, the captain was astounded to realize this huge ship was capable of warp-jumping, because something with this frame-type were not stable in star-stairways, not with the bay so narrowed down in the back considering the lower frame of the backup wings.

Wasn't that putting the cargo and landing bay into risk of being torn off mid-leap if the structure wasn't sturdy enough? Also, being able to leap meant the warp engine would need to be pretty huge, yet he did not remember seeing it on the ship; was it hidden somewhere? In the Quarry, perhaps?

Giroro might want to have a look at this baby from the outside, Garuru could use his brother's input on the design seeing Giroro was more keen on battle birds, being a mobile arsenal and all. It would be a shame to not let his brother see what a beautiful ship they'll be working with, too.

He had tried to share his thoughts regarding the ship and its design to Chief Medic Pururu, but the nurse was not enthusiastic on most of the information he tried to share with her, Pururu had no interest in aircrafts and seemed awkward with his excitement. Just because they liked each other didn't meant they shared a lot of things in common, unfortunately. Garuru was a little disappointed an elite guard arrived a while later and requested her assistance, her knowledge was needed reorganizing the office that had been destroyed. The purple one took the hint and let her be.

Alone and with most launch preparations complete, Garuru figured it was about time he reunited with the others and had their bracelets calibrated, aware that the six of them needed to be together for the final signal-sync to be achieved.

Considering he did not know much about the terrain of Wasuru TE he didn't want to risk the team getting scattered, and since their short frequency signals may or may not be reliable in an abandoned planet, depending too much on default connectivity would not be wise under the possibility there would be some magnetic interference from the earth itself, they needed proper gear in case there was any type of intervention from their surroundings.

Not to mention the lack of habitants there bothered him; no matter how dead a planet might be there is sure to be some sort of life form lurking about. The investigation team sent there may not have come across them yet, hence why they reported it was uninhibited.

He gave the ship one last look to try and memorize all the details, that's when he noticed some parts at the belly of the wing were rotating at a rather slow motion.

Was someone in the pilot seat testing out maneuverability? The lieutenant wasn't sure. He was, however, aware the task of piloting was assigned to himself and Giroro, so perhaps his brother found something to play with? With a growing grin, the white fangs of the captain peeked from under his lips. He's bet a toy train set his brother flipped out when he saw the Queen Bee module's cockpit; Giroro would always freak out whenever he'd see one of the latest pilot stations.

Garuru couldn't wait to see the look on Giroro's face when he discovers what the actual module's design shell looked like.

The purple invader made his way to the front of the spaceship and up the ramp, paying close attention to the workers getting the last bits of wiring and ironing down, preparing the ship for its first launch. Once inside he gave the narrow interior a onceover before heading into the dormitory area. On the way was a small sliding door that led into the restroom and in there were five stalls, three stalls were the toilets and the other two in the back were the shower rooms.

Inspecting the bathrooms for anything suspicious, Garuru was pleased to find nothing there so he headed towards the dormitory to inspect it as well, just to be safe.

The room was fair sized, perhaps the same size as a one-person bedroom in Pekoponian standards. There were three large beds with small corner tables keeping them apart, if only a little, and they occupied one side of the room from one wall to the other. There were also three study-desks fixed to the opposite side of the room, and looked like the type that could be folded into the wall as well like cabinets in case they needed more moving space seeing there was no lounging space between the bed posts and the desks.

The captain's lips twitched; it looked like the men will be sharing the beds while Rinono and Tororo would have beds of their own, considering the symbols placed at the foot of each bed, he and Giroro will be in one bed, with Shupepe and Kururu in the other. Tororo had the last bed for himself, so Garuru assumed since Rinono was the only female onboard the ship, she may be bunking in with the Admiral in her private quarters; somehow he figured it would make a lot more sense than letting her share the same room with the men.

After all, if they were a bunch of strangers who knew nothing about one another then there was no need to provide the settings for any shenanigans of that sort. Although the captain already had his eyes on Chief Medic Pururu, he had to admit Recruit Rinono was quite the catch, with luck she might gain his brother's interest. Or so he hoped.

Choosing to fiddle with the foldable desks later the lieutenant went about searching every fold and corner in the dormitory, just to be safe no suspicious objects were planted when no one was looking. Once he was satisfied everything was clean, Garuru plopped on the bed to see how comfortable they were. Sure they were nowhere as nice as the futons back home, he guessed they were nice enough to sleep in at the very least.

The downside of being a light sleeper was he had gotten used to switching beds often, and since he was the type who could not get too comfortable in a new bed, he had grown to accept it. Unlike Giroro who could sleep through a cataclysm if he was really tired.

With everything in place the purple soldier thought it was time to go check on the others, with luck they are getting along and nothing weird had happened yet. His little brother had the oddest luck with attracting the strangest events to himself for some unexplainable reason.

Garuru made his way out of the dormitory, past the restrooms and through the narrow corridor, soon reaching the stairway that led up to the next floor. The lieutenant however stopped before going up, noticing the strange lines that split the stairway into six sections. Apparently when the ship transforms this section will be inaccessible, meaning anyone who remained on the lower floor may or may not have access from or to the upper or lower floors.

Garuru's eyes widened and he focused on the lines decorating the inner walls of the ship, a small frown started to knit his brows together when he followed it. It was almost a squared-zigzag of sorts, it followed a pattern. Trailing it from the stairway all the way back to the dorm Garuru noticed it stopped by the doorway, so going back into the room he saw that there were no trails in the dorm itself, meaning the dormitory was one large section, so when the ship transforms the room will not change… or would it?

His frown deepened and he walked over the desks again, wondering if their foldable state had anything to do with the ship's transformation options.

Torn out of his thoughts the noise of static from the intercom came alive.

The first thing he heard was Tororo's angry laughter laced with irritation, "There, now it's online, happy? Now Fuck off and let me work!"

"Watch your mouth, brat!" Giroro's irate tone followed.

"Aren't you too young to be using such language?" Rinono's agitated voice began afterwards, "Honestly, Kururu had been rubbing on you boys _way_ too long," she muttered.

"He's a dick, you get used to it," Shupepe's voice spoke a little further away, "but at any case, instead of messing around why don't we get things going like we're supposed to? I think I saw a fa…" the voice trailed away, stepping away from the speaker and making it hard for the lieutenant to catch what the Chief Medic was saying.

"Oh shut up, you're not the boss of me!" Tororo snapped and the sound of a hand slamming the keyboard could be heard.

"Boys! Stop it! Settle down!" Rinono demanded aloud and there was a thwack of something soft hitting a solid surface, followed by a yelp, "Oh my goodness, Corporal! I'm so sorry! Are you hurt?" she continued, her voice a bit further away from the speaker.

Garuru caught himself laughing and at hearing his brother's ranting voice and Tororo's laughter, he could take a wild guess something went awkward. With a sigh he decided to go up there and make sure they weren't killing each other; Tororo had the habit of driving everyone up the wall when he decides to be a pest. Giroro had a short fuse and Tororo had a bad habit of pushing the envelope, he needed to be there before they tear down the ship.

It didn't take long for the captain to reach the stairway and find his way into the bridge, this time choosing to disregard the temptation of exploring the rest of the aircraft. The journey from the Grand Star to their destination will require at least three days minimum, so he had more than enough time to go spelunking, with Giroro, assuming his brother was in the mood. His baby brother had a habit of being too married to his work much like Garuru himself, but at least the purple one knew when to let loose and relax.

Speaking of which, Garuru was a little reluctant, but he had wanted to ask Giroro if he felt alright with his Pekoponian warrior friend not being present. Code 723 was Hinata Natsumi's known alias to the Keron Army, so since the lieutenant knew his brother had a soft spot for strong women he was a little worried his brother might have attachment issues. So far Giroro seemed to be handling everything just fine so perhaps the older brother was just thinking too much on the matter? He sure hoped so.

He entered the bridge with a placid expression, and was a little surprised to see Tororo and Giroro on the floor facing one another and trailing her fingers over a blueprint, while Shupepe and Rinono were looking over from the side. The Medic looked up and saw him but made no attempt to alert the others to his arrival, so the purple one approached and stood just a bit out of his brother's vision to look over the shoulder and see what they were discussing.

Giroro, too absorbed with the task at hand had no hint whatsoever that someone was even standing behind him, so he glanced at Tororo who sat across him at the other side of the blueprint, "So how about cross-wiring the propeller with the section here, it'll allow better balance with the heat regulator instead of focusing all of it on the main engine board," he explained, moving his finger from the center of the map displaying the ship from the inside, and towards the lower side where a set of fourteen engines could be seen.

Tororo, who noticed Garuru's arrival smothered a grin and said nothing, aware the Corporal hadn't noticed his captain's arrival, "Pupu, cross-wiring wont be an issue, it is getting the interior to fold correctly without causing any sort of damage to the pipes that might be tricky. I need to check the thing in person before we do anything," the young hacker chuckled and straightened up, "and besides, the Admiral needs to give us approval first, no?"

"Of course, I'm just trying to see how well we can customize this before launch; that section of the engine doesn't bode well with being so close to the bay, it'll make deploying anything from and to the ship difficult since they'll be in the engine's venting range." She argued and straightened up to cross his arms over his chest, contemplating the edits they could afford before it was time to leave. The fewer problems they got on this prototype the better!

"The engine's temperature would be too high and might cause the glass on approaching ships to shatter if they get too close. The bottom engines need to be redirected or shifted, they're lowered too much." He paused for a second to take a breather before he continued, "Although small ships wont have any issues with it, the larger ones might; we need to put into consideration that we may or may not end up picking larger ships on the way so it's best to be prepared for anything,"

"Always the careful one," Garuru spoke, bent down just enough to murmur into his brother's ear.

Rinono bit back a giggle when Giroro screeched and jumped out of his skin, where Shupepe had no qualms laughing at the way the Corporal screamed. Tororo chortled and fell backwards at the sound the Corporal made, unable to hold his own giggles.

"Garuru!" Giroro shouted, face flushed and embarrassed, a hand on his chest to calm his throbbing heart, "How many times do I have to tell you _Not_ to Sneak Up on me!" he scowled, irate and humiliated; "How long were you even standing there? You almost gave me a heart attack!" he admonished.

Garuru bit back a laugh and extended a hand, offering his surprised sibling help to get back up. "You get so absorbed into what you're doing you lose touch with your surroundings, Giroro; I like to think I'm giving you a reminder to step out of that habit." He teased.

Giroro huffed and accepted the hand, when he got to his two feet again he delivered a harmless punch to his older brother's shoulder, "You could have gone about it without freaking the daylights out of me," he muttered, still flustered.

"And what's the fun in that?" Garuru grinned, enjoying this way too much. Giroro's hatred for surprises never failed to entertain him.

Giroro's face flushed even deeper and looked like he was about to sock his sibling a good one, but then Rinono slipped an inward giggle when she struggled to keep herself together, earning the Corporal's attention. The two shared an awkward glance before they cleared their throats and composed themselves. Giroro drew in a deep breath and rubbed his forehead, there was no need to get so high-strung on these shenanigans, he needed to keep calm.

"What were you discussing? It sounded important." The lieutenant said again, redirecting the conversation to where it was before he made his presence known.

At that Tororo chose to speak after having controlled his laughter, "Pupu, the Corporal thinks the engine alignment on the ship need adjustments cause the bottom quarter is too close to the docking bay." He explained at first and then turned his attention to the blueprints to rotate it around, wanting the captain to see what they were talking about, "Although the design looked pretty flawless at first glance, looking at it from this side of the structure the Corporal does have a point,"

"large vessels wouldn't be able to get into the docking bay if they slow down, because the two engines here and here are facing downwards," he pointed at two of the large main engines drawn on the map, "meaning the heat and pressure would be facing the front of the arriving ship, and the heat will cause a rise in pressure that, depending on the ship, may or may not cause the front windows to shatter."

He paused for a second to sit upright again and looked at his leader, "Of course the heat could be limited and the engines adjusted to not face down so low, but it's not something I can change, they're built into the structure's skeleton-frame and need to be fixed by expert mechanics. This is not my league so I can't help," he mumbled.

"I see, I'll talk to the Admiral and have the adjustments made with her approval; since this is a prototype ship she may or may not be aware why such a crucial detail had been overlooked." He murmured, frowning a little at the thought that something so obvious couldn't have been made by mistake, could it? After a thought Garuru looked up and around, "I see Sergeant Major Kururu and the Admiral are not present?" he inquired, a little surprised they were absent.

"They went into the office earlier," Giroro muttered and then looked at the doorway with a hint of concern in his eyes, "they'd been in there for a long time, though."

"I don't hear anything, either," Shupepe muttered and leaned back against the back of the navigator's seat. "Usually furniture and electricity would be flying out the windows by now. They either knocked each other out, or, heaven forbid, they're actually getting along for once…"

Giroro blinked, "You make it sound like a bad thing," he commented, almost a question.

Rinono mumbled something under her breath and then crossed her arms, hugging herself, "Koii and Kururu are a disaster waiting to happen, pray to the heavens they don't agree on something without a catastrophe following soon after." She shuddered.

The group then turned to the doorway, each sporting a different volume of curiosity or concern.

Giroro would admit he was a little worried about Kururu, the Sergeant Major hadn't been acting himself as of late. What if he got on bad terms with the Admiral and needed some backup? Even if Kururu tended to be an ass he was still a comrade and Giroro felt that all things considered, Kururu was a decent guy once people took the time to know him. The yellow prick just had a knack of pushing the right buttons to set them off, is all…

And with a mental fluster the Corporal looked down at the map; there was no need to fret over the yellow creeper, Kururu was a big boy he can handle himself.

**. .**

The silence that enveloped the small office was only scratching the surface of the true danger that lurked within.

Though the office itself was empty of the two Keronians who were supposed to be there, the eerie lack of noise was enough to tell anyone something dark was lurking beyond and within the room, spreading something dangerous through the air, like venom.

On the far side of the room was a massive desk and through it seemed as normal as any other office furniture, an expert eye could tell there was something suspicious about it. The desk and chair that adorned the back of the office was a disguise, a cover for the rotating door that led into the Quarry room hidden beyond. There was a narrow corridor leading from the office to the hidden chamber, many small and long pipes adorned the four corners of the pathway, red lights also dotted the four pipe-aligned corners like seeing eyes, restless and unblinking.

At the edge of the tunnel was a violet-pink hued doorway, the path led into a room bathed in the vibrant light of the massive tank that took up most of the free space. The tank was positioned on a large pedestal that gave it a slight perch against the wall to back up all the weight it possessed. The pedestal at the bottom also had Keronian text engraved on the metal plating. The glass was thick, bullet proof by any stretch of the word. The tank was full of bubbling pink goo and a pulsating sound came from the base where monitors and status screens could be detected.

Sergeant Major Kururu sat against the opposite wall of the small chamber, a leather-bound tome in his hands and a pile of papers set besides him, he flipped through the pages slow and calm, but his expression was anything but relaxed.

This was bad. This was very, Very bad…

The Admiral sat down next to him and offered a cup of tea, she was holding the kettle in her other hand. She had her helmet and goggles off and placed near the foot of the tank. Her face was calm yet showed narrowed golden eyes and a ghost of a smile. "Found what you're looking for yet?" she inquired.

Kururu accepted the cup with reluctance, not sure if it was safe to drink anything brewed by her no matter how safe it looked. For all he'd know, she could have spiked or laced it with something his acute sense of taste would be unable to detect.

"Nope; I still can't believe something like this is even possible, and I've _seen_ weirder things," He muttered and put the cup down, not daring to taste the hot drink just yet. He skipped a few pages, taking a long moment to read through the text before speaking again, "there is nothing in this tome about being able to contain thousands of souls in one body; no matter what kind of dark magic is being used it is just impossible for anything to stay sane under such conditions. I'm surprised you were able to contain it at all." He argued and then looked at the tank.

"That is why we're taking him to Wasuru TE, it is where we found him and as thus I wish to return this thing from the hells of which it came, but to do that I need your assistance." She responded and let her legs stretch out, back to the wall, and with the kettle besides her the Admiral nursed the cup in her hands and looked at her own weary reflection. "The commander had been missing for so long, and so many men lost their lives trying to purge this wicked spell off him, but not even I was able to figure out how to dispel it." She sighed, and then took a sip of the drink, savoring the rich flavor it provided.

"My only clue was the temple where we found this book in the first place," she gestured at the massive tome, "then linked it back to the report you sent in months ago regarding that Dragonian child, it all made sense. If we could take this beast back to that temple we might be able to figure out what or where it came from and how to retrieve the men it took away, assuming that is even possible." A wane smile curved the corners of her wrinkled lips.

"You, as one of my best students, have excelled in the Magi arts of the Keron Army beyond everyone's expectation, including myself." She praised and then took a slow sip from her drink, "If anyone can help solve this predicament, it would be you," she said, a hint of fangs shown from under weary lips, "After all, you are the family's Legacy, Kurru;" she murmured before she took another long sip of tea.

"I thought we agreed you'd stop calling me that," he hissed and let the book sit wide open on his lap, and then glowered at her just a little as a fluster colored his face.

"Ah, right, I apologize," she nodded once, not looking apologetic at all, "would calling you 'grandson' be better, then?"

"No, call me by rank; it'll be really weird if anyone knew we were related." Kururu muttered and picked up a small wad of paper, shuffling through in search of something, "Besides, I thought you said family ties are null within the army, so don't expect any favors from me. I'm only agreeing to do this because I want to know what the fuss is all about. Not to mention _that_," he tilted his head towards the tank, "isn't particularly something you handle on your own; don't you have an assassin team for these?"

"My job as both Assassin leader and Admiral is pretty much an occupational hazard; I frankly wouldn't have it any other way, it keeps me entertained." she chuckled with the hint of jagged sharp teeth, she took a sip from her drink to empty the cup and then pour herself another, then glanced at the massive tank, "Not sure if he feels the same, though. I hadn't let him out of there for a while, whenever it is time to let him out he might be very groggy when he comes to." she murmured, expression softened.

"Who is he, anyway?" Kururu muttered and glanced at the violet glowing tank, the faint silhouette of the beast within was somewhat visible.

"His name used to be Narara, but now we just refer to him as Kiruru-seven-point-nine. Due to many creatures being swallowed and trans-morphed into one, he is no longer a Keronian or a Dragonian, he's just… an abomination, sad to say." She paused as an expression of sadness shown on her features. "I thought that somehow we could reason with it, and it does seem to be sentient to some level, I'm just afraid that by hosting so many souls it has a worse case of personality-disorder than I do."

"Also, he used to be one of the Keron Army's best Commanders until a few decades ago, it was when he disappeared during an excavation on Wasuru TE when it was first re-discovered." She added and took a large swig of her drink.

"Heh, when I was a little girl he and I used to be close friends, but with time we drifted off and took separate ways," she murmured and she drifted into a tangent, her posture slacked against the wall looking like she was about to fall asleep, "He was a good friend, I used to have a crush on him when I was your age, but he liked someone else and I was too damn timid to confess, so I lost my chance to be with him… until I met your grandfather; that oaf." she laughed and took another sip from her drink, ignoring how the yellow made a gagging gesture.

"Don't go there," he growled and looked back at the papers. He did not want to deal with her girly pink-colored nostalgia…

The Admiral smiled, put down the mug and wrapped her arms around the yellow invader, she said nothing while she pulled him into a hug, holding him close. Kururu made a squeaked 'Kii!' is surprise and wriggled a little but made no attempt to knock her off, instead he waited for a few seconds just to be sure she wasn't going to fall asleep, before he sighed and his body went a little limp against him.

"You're not gonna stop doting on me, are you…" he murmured, a laugh to his voice despite his annoyed scowl.

"You've always been my favorite," she laughed and held him closer, "I'm just so proud of you, sweetheart."

"Koii! Stop that!" Kururu whined and flailed having the nerve to push her hands off at last, his face flushed a warm shade of orange, "I'm a Sergeant Major for crying out loud! I'm not the timid little baby anymore!" he complained and scowled, trying not to show how embarrassing he found the scene, he was too old for these hugs and cuddles! "And aren't we supposed to hate each others guts? Or is this your granny-side talking?" he grumbled.

"My medications are keeping the angry side sedated, so I think it's safe for us to have company," she murmured and let go with a weary smile, "unless you'd rather deal with the other me?" she arched a brow, eyes drooping a little.

Kururu sighed and grabbed her shoulder, "Koii, I think the meds are messing with you again, maybe you should go take a nap, I'll handle everything from here," he replied almost in a soothing tone, he reached down to take her hand, he got to his feet and with a tug gestured for her to stand as well, "I'll need to make sure all preparations are complete before we take off, we still have a few hours so you should rest." He reasoned.

The Sergeant Major hated having to play nanny, but also knowing that if he didn't then things will go south if this Admiral is left to do what she pleased without supervision; she was not acting herself and needed to be looked after. The downside of being under heavy medication was not knowing when the personality would switch, or what would trigger it, and he sure didn't want to be caught cuddling in one minute and then getting his hide tanned the next.

Shupepe's abuse still left him feeling pretty sore and tender.

In retrospect, when they walked into the office she had asked him what he was willing to gamble with in return of playing nice, and he had agreed to behave for the sake of the success of this mission if she let him in on the whole story. He had managed to negotiate and convince the Admiral to give him full access to the tank and all related materials, and though reluctant about letting him burn his hands with such a hot piece of coal, Admiral Koii figured Kururu was a big boy and if he wanted a bite of such a hard knuckle sandwich then, hey? Who was she to deny him what he wanted?

Little did he know what he had gotten himself into; alas this was not the time or the place for regrets.

He could not walk out of this, not anymore, not now that he had learned more than what his superior allowed. If he as much tried to get out of this mission now he would literally be putting his life, as well as the Corporal on the line.

Why the Corporal? Simple…

Koii knew everything about the Keroro platoon, she had somehow acknowledged his desire to join the platoon because the Corporal was there, and knew the connection between the red soldier and lieutenant Garuru. From the way Koii explained it, Kururu was led to believe Garuru was not convinced to join this mission out of interest, but rather out of peer pressure, which means Rinono and Shupepe may or may not have been conned into joining, perhaps for Kururu's sake?

The only one who was out of the loop was Tororo, but that kid was just a rookie and if things went south and they had to cover their tracks, his testimonies would not amount to anything to the ears of the council, not compared to those who are much older and outrank him.

They had all been played, but Kururu was the only one to realize just how deep they had been thrown. There was nothing he could do to get out of it, not to save himself or the others, or at least not for the time being. For now Kururu had to cooperate and play nice until he could figure out how to get out of this little mess. Alas, he can't even share what he had found with Giroro, because the Corporal was moral-driven and would no doubt try to turn the tides which would only make things worse.

No. Corporal Giroro did not need to know any of this, not until it was safe to share this information.

What Kururu had to say was dangerous and someone like Giroro would rather take it to the extreme than let them play the way Koii intends for them to go. This was very dark magic, and as far as the forbidden, almost forgotten arts of the once-banished Assassins magic would go, what Koii planned to do will require a _very_ powerful sacrifice…

Given the selection she had handpicked for this mission, Kururu was just worried _who_ she had planned to use…

**. .**

Garuru trailed his hand from one side of the blueprint to the other and stopped a mere inch from the red mitt of his brother keeping the corner down as well.

They had located another blueprint stashed in the same bin Shupepe had located earlier, said item was curled within another print which was why they didn't know it was there from the beginning. The second blueprint they found was a cross-section of the bridge, showing the basic wiring and construction of their assembled seats. The group had been looking over the blueprints displaying the details schematics of their vessel, noticing small and odd looking bits and pieces joining the whole thing together.

The two brothers were examining the details of the structure, when a moment later Tororo and Rinono arrived with items they could use as paperweights and placed them on the four corners of the parchment to keep it down. Through the conversation exchanged by the others regarding the things they noticed on the blueprints, the lieutenant did not share his thoughts because he wanted to know what the others thought of the massive piece of Keron ingenuity first.

"So if what Corporal Giroro says is true and this ship is capable of trans-morphing into a different machine, almost a battle module, then why aren't there any blueprints available of said module? Shouldn't there be one displaying what it'll look like?" Rinono argued where she sat next to the other recruit, a quizzical frown on her face. "I don't like the idea of being inside a giant machine and not risk getting crushed between the pipes, it sounds like a horror movie to me." She shuddered and hugged herself, appalled at the mere thought of such a thing happening.

"Koii probably decided not to share, she might have the full map of this ship in her office desk," Shupepe replied and crossed his arms, glancing at the door located across the bridge. "Maybe we ought to go see her, she and Kururu had been in there for over two hours," he muttered, anxious and uncomfortable with the disconcerting silence.

Giroro turned to face the direction of the door as well, the anxiousness visible on his features and he made no attempt to hide them, "Is it usually this quiet when those two talk?"

"Never," Shupepe responded, perhaps faster than intended, "like I said a while ago, they'd usually be furniture flying out the windows; heck! I'm surprised the ship is still in one piece. They're either dead or got along so well they forgot to gut each other." He grumbled, flexed his arms and then marched towards the office, "Screw it, I'm going in." he announced. Rinono said nothing and followed after him, but he was quick to whirl around and point a finger at her, "Alone!" he emphasized, stern and unyielding.

Whatever Rinono wanted to argue was tossed out her window of thought, Shupepe was serious. She sighed in defeat and nodded, she watched him leave and enter the office without bothering to knock, her lips pursed in mild displeasure at being denied to accompany him. Of course, for what felt like the slowest five minutes of existence, Shupepe peered out the door with a scowl minutes after. Rinono, confused and alarmed at his quick return hurried towards him, the two shared a hushed conversation that the other three were not able to catch.

Shupepe glanced past his sister to the others, "Lieutenant, the Admiral and Sergeant Major are in the Quarry room, you wouldn't happen to know the password, would you?" he asked, though from the look of his face one could guess he didn't think there would be a positive answer.

Alas, the Medic was right, "Afraid not, I have not been granted permission into the Quarry room," Garuru replied and got up to walk towards the pair, "is there no other alternative way to access it?" he asked, sounding far more interested than he let on. At least, that was how Giroro heard it.

"No, the Admiral hadn't told me if any other path, so I don't think there is one." The pale blue one muttered. A second later he glanced at the Corporal, "How about you?"

"I'm afraid I didn't even know there _was_ a Quarry room," Giroro shrugged, awkward.

"What's a Quarry room?" Tororo piped up, confused.

"It's where the tank, our mission objective, is being kept," Shupepe muttered and then turned on his heels back towards the office, "I'm not getting any responses from the intercom, so I don't know if my connection is going through or if there is no one there."

The group soon followed into the office and looked around surprised the Sergeant Major as well as the Admiral were indeed missing. Garuru and Shupepe approached the office desk and shared a silent glance, both aware this was the trigger to go into the Quarry room, but they had no idea how to gain access.

That was when Giroro flinched and clapped a hand to the side of his head, the loud sound of buzzing and static could be heard from his short frequency communicator. Before the Corporal could say anything there was a jingle in his device, and then they all heard the sound of steam hissing. Seconds later there was a low groaning sound and the desktop vibrated. Garuru and Shupepe moved away from the rotating ground as the secret door moved, revealing the two missing agents.

They saw Kururu with the Admiral slumped on his back, she was silent and unmoving.

Rinono gasped and rushed towards them checking their leader for any possible injury. Seconds later she sighed in relief and turned to her brother, "She's asleep; thank goodness, I thought she overdosed again…" she murmured, her tone paled just a little at the thought. "Kururu, what happened? You two were gone for hours!"

The yellow remained quiet while he helped his sister move the unconscious figure of the Admiral to the nearby sofa to lay her down, while the Chief Medic made sure all her symptoms were stable.

"She literally fell asleep," Kururu said at last, then turned to the others, "she'd been pretty much asleep the whole time we were gone." He said.

Giroro approached, giving the yellow one a stern yet concerned look square at the face, "Kururu, is there anything we need to know?" he inquired, noting that the yellow one looked a little pale.

Kururu stared at him, almost looking like he had been doped up and shrugged. There was no smile, no chuckle, no sign of amusement, his expression was blank and neutral, "I feel fine," he replied, missing the question altogether, his body lolled a bit to the side before he up-righted himself, "I think we just… had too much tea," he then added, then his body began to sway again.

Giroro was not having any of that, so before anyone could interject he grabbed Kururu by the arm and placed it over his shoulder, his free hand circled the yellow back to rest firm on the hip, "I'm taking him to the dormitory before he crashes," he told and guided the weak-kneed Sergeant Major out of the room.

Garuru watched; some very interesting developments were starting to happen.

Whatever happened, he was sure the answers were in the Quarry room.

This mission was already becoming more and more complicated.


	15. Storms Ahead

**. o 0 Chapter Fifteen 0 o **.

The first thing he heard was silence; his surroundings were ever so peaceful and quiet.

There was a very soft and cool pillow under his head, warm and soothing sheets under his body, while a thick and heavy blanket was draped over his body and shoulders keeping him snuggled within an embrace of warmth.

Weary eyes fluttered open from behind thick, disk glasses, the yellow figure shifted just the slightest bit over the sheets to peer around the dim-lit bedroom, confused to the whereabouts of his current location. It was only seconds later the faint light was focused enough for him to notice a figure on the bed just across his reach. The person sitting just inches away had a rich shade of red and something dark crossed over the white of his torso. The figure had not yet noticed him, distracted and looking away at something else.

Sergeant Major Kururu sighed in relief when he recognized who it was. "Senior?" he called out, surprised at his own rasped voice.

The figure seemed startled at his voice and then shifted off the bed to move closer, after sitting on the edge of the mattress a hand reached out to cup the yellow one's forehead. Kururu felt a shiver go up his spine and a tingle warmed his cheeks, a little surprised at the affectionate gesture. "Seems your temperature is back to normal; you had us worried," Giroro spoke in a hushed, soft tone, "do you feel alright?" he asked and withdrew his hand, and due to the weak source of light he missed the slight downcast curve of the yellow one's lips.

"I feel fine," Kururu replied, even more confused, "why? What happened?"

Giroro's face started to get more clear as his eyes adjusted to the darkness, and the Sergeant Major could read the concerned frown on the Corporal's face, "You and the Admiral were in the Quarry room for over three hours, when you two came out you were both doped up pretty bad," he said at first, giving his comrade a moment to absorb that piece of information, "Kururu, do you remember what you two were doing in there?"

Tired and heavy eyelids blinked slow, due to the thick glasses the Corporal had not been able to see them, "We were… reading books, talked, had some tea," the groggy soldier replied, then slipped a hand from under the blanket to rub his own weary face, "I think the tea might have been laced with some sort of sedative," he added with a hint of irritation and draped his arm over his face, trying to remember what else they did during their time away from the others.

Little by little all the things that made Kururu upset came back, much to his everlasting joy he was too sleepy to comprehend the slam of information to his mind. It did little to nothing to make him feel better however, because he knew he had gotten himself tangled in this ploy, hook, line and sinker.

Torn out of his thoughts the warm and tender hand of the corporal found its way to his cheek again with a light touch, looking for the pulse at the edge oh that yellow neck, "Are you still feeling ill? You're not as cold as before, but I wouldn't be surprised if your temperature dropped again,"

"What? You were worried about me?" Kururu laughed, teasing and playful.

"Of course!" Giroro answered, tone chiding and upset, "you just passed out all of a sudden and you were as cold as ice! I was afraid something was wrong with you!" he argued, a flare to his eyes the Sergeant Major was unable to read. "Pururu came over and said you were forced into some sort of hibernation, but since you seemed stable it was safe to just let you rest. She said if you didn't wake up within six hours we should call her again to move you to the infirmary." He elaborated.

Kururu stared, unable to explain the sudden and almost painful single throb of heartbeats against his chest. His face felt hotter, too.

But he masked it the best he could, "I'm not a kid, senior," he retorted, wanting to sound annoyed or angry, something or anything to cast away the flutter of myriad emotions in his chest- Oh how he wanted to just reach up and yank that face down for a kiss, but he knew Giroro would just brush it away as the dope messing with Kururu's senses. Instead he pulled himself together and swallowed the thick knot in his throat, "Is the Admiral out cold, too?" he inquired, wanting to know if he was the only one affected.

"No, I just went to check about twenty minutes ago, Chief Medic Shupepe said she was resting and her temperature is back to normal, but she was no longer under the effect of… whatever it was you two had." He replied and withdrew his hand.

Kururu nodded once and let his arm slide off his head and drop besides him, not bothering to pull it down to his side he let it rest over his head onto the pillow. He closed his eyes and drew in a long, deep breath, needing to clear his mind and think his next few steps through. So far no one knew anything of the Quarry room save for him and Koii, the others had no idea what was going on so it was best to leave them in the dark, they didn't need to know anything about the true intention or risks of this mission.

"Kururu," the Corporal spoke once more, voice collected and questioning, "I'm going to go check with the others, the last preparations for launch are upon us and as second-hand pilot, I need to be there to confirm everything is in operational order," he began, then paused for a second before he continued in a softer tone, "Do you… need anything before I go?"

"Yeah, don't let the door hit you on the way out." Kururu grumbled and rolled over, looking away from the Corporal he buried his face into the pillow.

Giroro was, for the lack of better word, so offended at the others reply his jaw slacked and he stared in disbelief.

The Corporal had half a mind to kick the damn little twit off the bed and give him a well deserved pounding, then remembered the Sergeant Major may or may not be still under the influence of the strange medication, therefore he may or may not be telling him the whole story. Did Kururu and the Admiral have some sort of fight that left the yellow one so cranky? He wouldn't be too surprised since he had been told Kururu and Koii don't like one another.

Maybe Kururu was just venting his anger on Giroro because he could?

With an aggravated grunt the red soldier pushed off the bed and marched out, never once turning to the one in bed yanking at the blanket.

Sergeant Major Kururu hated his very own guts; he peered from the pillow to the door and watched the door for a second longer to confirm he was the only one left in the room.

He was very glad the dim lights hid the fact his face was a warm flushed shade of orange. He knew his reply was very much out of line, Giroro was concerned for him which was exactly the issue that had him tangled in knots. Why the hell was he so sensitive to the Corporal's words and touches? Why was he feeling so hyper-emotional? It left him feeling very weird. Being so open left him feeling so vulnerable it was terrifying and he hated it!

Kururu had never felt so embarrassed, the way his heart refused to calm down only upset him further. He refused to believe he was in love with that red nimrod, it just couldn't be possible! The stuff Koii put in the drink must be messing with him, it left him feeling so out of place it wasn't even funny!

But if that was the case, why wasn't he enjoying this pain? Why was his chest aching, and why were tears in his eyes making his vision all blurry? It reminded him of the hurt he used to feel as a child, a time long forgotten. He didn't enjoy this agony, he hated being so lost and confused, he didn't like any of it at all!

He wanted it to just… stop… he wanted to drown away this uncomfortable feeling…

He had to snap out of this daze, he just had to! His reputation as the mastermind, sadist, Sergeant Major depended on it!

**. .**

Recruit Tororo was in the process of calibrating the two bracelets on Shupepe and Rinono's wrists when Giroro arrived.

Lieutenant Garuru was quick to approach his sulking brother and engaged in a hushed conversation to know how the Sergeant Major was doing, and perhaps hear his side of the story to see what was putting his brother in such a bad mood. While the red and purple siblings talked away from the other three's earshot, Rinono fingered the bracelet on her wrist when Tororo was finished, and then rolled it around just to be sure it wasn't on too tight, because it was clear from the displeased look on Shupepe's face he didn't need to hear what they were saying to know it were grim news.

"I just don't get him sometimes, he can be so goddamn _difficult!_" Giroro snarled a little louder and his fists shook by his sides in suppressed anger, really annoyed at his yellow comrade.

"It's all right, Giroro, we will just have to wait until everyone is settled, I'm sure things will clear out once the medication is out of his system." Garuru replied, and at the puzzled glance from the red invader the lieutenant chose to elaborate, "Chief Medic Shupepe examined Admiral Koii's condition and confirmed she had overdosed her medication. Chances are she had let Sergeant Major Kururu consume some of it as well, either in hindsight or on purpose is unknown seeing she is still asleep." He paused for a moment to let that piece of information sink in.

"Although it is not to be spoken of, Admiral Koii has slight… _temper_ issues, the medication was meant to help her stay calm but the overdose works like morphine, too much of it would have outright killed her. Fortunately the Sergeant Major is much younger with a more able body, his metabolism had been able to avoid any actual danger." He said, and then gave his little brother a questioning look, "But from the look on your face it's not making you feel any better, is it."

"I might just be getting paranoid here, but Kururu had been acting _really_ weird," Giroro confessed, anxious and concerned, "It's like… ever since we started this mission he'd been up and bothered about something, but it wasn't until now that I realize it's something he may not be able to talk about." He argued.

Giroro felt guilty; despite the fact that Kururu had been able to confine in him about a few things, it almost seemed as if the one issue Kururu had really wanted to talk about could just not be brought up, which caused the yellow Sergeant Major to be so uptight, more so than the Corporal realized. Kururu had always been neutral and passive, he was always cool and in control so seeing him like this was serving the red Keronian nothing but worry and alarm,

The red soldier wanted to know what his comrade's problem was so he could do something about it and set things right again, but he had a gut feeling it was something he couldn't just force out of Kururu, nor ask about, the yellow one had to bring it up by choice, not by force.

Garuru's expression was calm, but his red brother could tell his older sibling was unsettled by that little revelation, "I see," was the first thing the lieutenant said, before he turned to the two other siblings in the bridge, "Chief Medic Shupepe, Sergeant Major Kururu is awake, I believe it would be a good chance for you to speak with him?" he suggested, and that tone was not open for debate from what Giroro could tell.

"Yeah, good idea; we don't need him causing any more trouble than he already had." Shupepe muttered in irritation, then marched past the two men and towards the door leading to the lower floor, he had wanted to talk to Kururu for a while anyway.

Giroro bit back an affronted scowl; the least Shupepe could do was show a little faith in his brother no matter how much they disliked one another. What kind of family support was that supposed to be? No wonder Kururu had been acting so tense. His brother must be making him so uncomfortable.

"Please don't mind him, I'm sure he didn't mean it," Rinono spoke and approached the two men with an apologetic smile, "Shupepe had been under a lot of stress so being sympathetic is a bit hard for him right now," she shrugged and then hurried after her brother. She had to make sure those two were being civil with one another, she didn't want to risk Shupepe flipping his lid and attacking Kururu when their baby brother was not up to the fight.

Also, she didn't want to risk them tearing down the house while they were at it, too.

Giroro made a loud annoyed grunt and marched back to his flamboyant looking pilot seat. It was still in the Queen Bee settings and he rather liked it this way, all the glowing screens and shiny buttons would keep him distracted and entertained while those three sorted their differences.

Garuru, however, followed after his red brother and leaned against Tororo's seat, his back to the tadpole's post and ankles crossed in a casual stance he kept his eyes on the two of them. Tororo was absorbed into his programming and it seemed like he didn't pay any lick of attention to the scenario that played behind him just seconds ago. Giroro on the other hand found goggles in the drawer of his seat and put them on, he started experimenting with some buttons to see what he could work with.

Garuru, though calm and unmoving, could tell those two were being blank for show.

Tororo's shoulders were squared and his general body language was tense and agitated, and while Giroro seemed to be taking his time messing with the option menu and reading through text, he wasn't putting his heart into the task.

The Lieutenant understood that Kururu as a high ranked officer was something to worry about, but the way those two reacted to it made it seem like something more.

To Giroro, Kururu wasn't just his superior, he was a comrade and perhaps a friend to some level, while Tororo considered him a worthy rival, maybe? Garuru was only scratching the surface, because he would admit he hardly knew Sergeant Major Kururu outside work, they almost never interacted with one another at all so his statements would not amount to much, not compared to his brother and the recruit.

True he had read the report and was more than aware of the yellow one's abilities and potential, it said nothing about his character or how others preserved him as a person.

Whatever was bothering the Sergeant Major however, Garuru hoped it was not something connected to Giroro. He had noticed the way the yellow one had been sizing up his brother and though he didn't like where it was headed, Giroro seemed oblivious to it which was why he made no reaction of acknowledging it in the first place.

If it had nothing to do with his brother though, Garuru hoped it'll work out somehow, because the yellow demon's current state was not up to how he knew him to be. Sergeant Major Kururu was better than this, and whatever dumps in the road he was having better not be a pothole, or else they'll be in for a very uncomfortable ride.

**. .**

At the time, Rinono had just reached the entrance to the dormitory when it slid open to reveal an infuriated Shupepe, but before she could ask what was wrong he was quick to answer her yet to be spoken question, "He's not here." He said at first, loud and angry, "If he bailed out on us I swear to Keron- !" he continued, body shaking, just as his temper flared it also simmered down into a frown and Rinono only needed a minute to notice he was looking past her.

She turned around expecting to see Kururu, but then realized he wasn't there, instead Shupepe was looking at the doorway leading into the restroom.

Confused, her pale blue sibling push past her and hit the button to open the door.

As soon as the door slid away from view a cloudy puff of hot, white steam erupted and the loud rushing of the shower could be heard. The restroom was heavy with humidity and she was alarmed at the level of heat compressed into the small space. The floor was all wet and at least an inch high due to the drain's inability to pull it all away, when she took a hesitant step in her feet were submerged a little above the ankles in hot yet tolerable water.

If it hadn't been for the fact it was an inch lower than the corridor, she'd bet the water would have seeped from under the doorway and leaked everywhere. The room had been compressed with so much heat she felt the moist build over her skin. Even the mirrors in the room were fogged up and she could not see her reflected, just a blur of color over the hazed surface. As soon as they stepped into the restroom, the door shut right behind them preventing any more heat from escaping.

"Kururu!" she called while she entered in worry, she walked in with care over the wet tiled floor towards the two stalls at the back, and noticing that only one shower nozzle was turned on, cranked up to maximum with hot rushing water. "Kururu?" she called again with pronounced need for his response, wanting to hear his answer over the loud rumbling of water.

Were they too late and their baby brother got himself boiled alive in there? Or was he being a defiant child again and refusing to respond?

"Go away," came a shout, almost lost due to the sound of the water pouring overhead, but it served its purpose to remove a heavy sense of dread off Rinono's chest, "can't a guy drown his sorrows in peace? I mean seriously, buzz off!" he continued while sounding very cranky. Shupepe attempted to open the stall's door, but found it was locked tight. "What part of go away do you guys don't understand?" Kururu shot out again, louder and angrier than before.

Rinono noted the voice was coming from below, which hinted Kururu might be sitting on the floor rather than standing; was he huddled up in the corner again? He hadn't done that since they were kids, "We just want to talk, please, Kururu?" Rinono pleaded, worried about him having some serious problems and not being able to talk about them.

"I'm in the middle of a friggin shower! Does it look like I _want_ to talk?" he shot back, wanting to get his point across.

"Kururu, you always hide in the shower when you want to get out of talking about your problems," Shupepe lectured, arms crossed over his chest and an irate look on his face, "you open this door right now and stop wasting all the hot water!"

"Fuck you! I do what I want!" was the yellow one's retort.

"As far as fucking is concerned I don't think I'm the one you want, bro," the Medic replied, a dark grin appeared across his features.

Rinono tensed when she heard a loud, garbled snarl coming from the other side of the door.

One second they were just standing there, the next there was a loud banging noise as the stall's door was then decorated with the outward dent that looked a lot like an angry fist. Alas, much to the baffled sister's terrified confusion, three more dents followed and a blood curdling shout later, the howl echoed and resonated within the boundaries of the near sound-proof walls, Kururu settled down into silence again while his intangible slur of swears were deafened by the loud rushing water.

The pale orange female knew right there and then Shupepe was just adding fuel to the fire. She had to keep those two apart before some physical damage came to either of them. Knowing her brothers for as long as she did, she was more than aware Kururu could be just as dark as Koii if he was pushed to the brink, and Shupepe was just as merciless if he wanted to be as well. It was her job as the eldest to make sure those two don't kill each other.

She swallowed the large lump in her throat and spoke loud enough for her blue brother to hear. "Shupepe, I think you should leave," she warned.

"What?" Shupepe took a sharp breath at her request, horrified to think of what might happen if he left her in such a situation, "I'm not leaving you with this maniac!" he pointed at the dents on the door, "Do you have any idea how- ?"

"**Leave!**" she demanded with a brave, stern face, her tone was without a doubt very serious.

Surprised and taken aback by her expression yet guessing it was a might versus might scenario, the Medic thought his skills might have to wait for another chance because it was clear Rinono was planning to do this the hard way. He complied and stepped out of the restroom, but kept close to the quarters just in case she needed him. He didn't want to go to the upper level in fear it'll attract unwanted attention, and didn't want to go to the dormitory in case his sister was able to convince their brother out, he wanted to be there.

Rinono waited patiently for any sound to come from the stall, but all she heard was the rushing water.

She drew in a deep, calming breath before letting go with a sigh, her eyes turned to the dents decorating the door, she pursed her lips and managed a weak smile before she spoke, "Kururu," she began, soft and gentle, loud enough for him to hear, "I cant say I know what you're going through, I honestly have no idea what's going on," she admitted taking a step closer to the door, but did not dare to try and open it, "If you'd let me, maybe we could talk this out?"

He said nothing, but she knew beyond the door he was curled up in the corner hugging his knees, she didn't need to see him to know it was his defense mechanism. "Kururu, whenever you're in a really bad mood you always lock yourself in the shower; hot water and humidity at this level make you very emotional," she paused, choosing her words with care, "if there is something bothering you it's okay to be upset, I completely understand if you don't want to talk about it, if you're in need of someone to just hear you out, I'm here." She offered.

Again, there was silence and she felt her heart beat a little harder against her ribs; time for plan B, "Kururu, the Corporal had been very worried about you," she began, but then felt the slightest shift in the atmosphere she could not explain, nevertheless she continued, "he said that you've been acting very different, he was pretty upset about it." She told, wanting him to know his actions were not affecting or upsetting her alone.

"Don't lie to me," came the low growl, then nothing more.

Rinono blinked, surprised at his reply. She pursed her lips to think before she poke again, "I have no reason to lie to you, Kurru,"

"Don't Fuckin' Call Me That!" he bellowed, startling her with the shout enough to make her jump in her skin.

Rinono swallowed and placed a hand on her chest to calm her beating heart, her tears threatened to fill her eyes from the stab of hurt twisting in her chest; this was bad! This was very, very bad! "Kururu," she said again, but realized there was a crack in her voice, so she drew in a breath to keep herself together, this was not the time to fall apart! "Listen, I know we've not been a family for the longest time, but can't we try to work this out?" she begged, her eyes full of tears and her chest ached a little, she waited for a response.

The heat and humidity did little to keep her together, just the opposite it only made her feel weaker in the knees.

But again, there was only silence and another shift in the atmosphere.

She got angry, grit her teeth and gave the stall's door a resounding punch, not enough to dent but enough to make the one inside jump in his skin in return, "Don't you freakin give me that attitude Kururu! Stop being so goddamn difficult and work with me here!" she bellowed, her trembling transformed into anger and her pose became more defiant to the hurt, "I love you and I care that you're having a hard time! I want to help you make everything better, I can't stand seeing you like this, okay? Help me help you, damn it!"

Then there was the sound of rushing water and humidity drowning everything again.

Her anger deflated, a heavy weight built on her shoulders the female closed her eyes in defeat. This was pointless, "Fine, I can see it clearly, Kururu, you just wanted to be left alone, I might as well just leave. I can tell you're as hardheaded as ever; I don't know _what_ I was thinking…" she muttered and moved away from the stall and back towards the door, careful not to slip.

A few steps away and there was the splashing sound of feet on water. Rinono was confused at the sudden splashing and turned to the stall again, hearing constant splashing as if her brother was repeatedly slapping the floor, and low garbled noises followed.

When it all went silent, alarms went on in her mind again. "Kururu?" she called out, confused.

Instead of a voice the stall's door gave a low clicking sound before it creaked open. The yellow figure leaned against the doorway and turned to her and the female felt her heart go out of place; her brother was not wearing his glasses, and he was giving her the most heartbreaking look she had ever seen. He didn't even need to say anything, she rushed towards him to pull him into a strong hold. Kururu did not react at first, his hands moved slow and reluctant seconds later to rest against her shoulders and he trembled.

"Rii," came the tiny whimper, "I fucked up… I fucked up so bad…" he held her tighter, not giving in to the tears filling his eyes but needing to hold onto someone.

She held him close and let him press his trembling body against her more study frame, offering him as much physical support as she could, "Is there anything I can do to help?" she murmured, hoping he was just being emotional and the issue wasn't as drastic as he made it out to be.

The yellow one shook his head slowly, then buried his face into her chest, "It's all my doing, I tried to fix it but it only got worse," he said, sounding tired and miserable, "and when I got the chance to have it all I smashed it with my own hands; I threw it all away!" he growled, his fingers dug into her shoulders and at her flinch he eased them down again, reminding himself he needed to keep it together, "I'm such an _Idiot!_" he barked, angry at himself and the frustration filling him. He drew back and peered up at her, exhausted. "I don't think I can ever go back and make it better, Rii… what am I supposed to do?"

Rinono smiled and kissed him on the forehead before pulling him into her arms again, "You just say that cause you've stretched yourself thin and let the heat mess with your head, I'm sure after you get dry and have a nice, hot bowl of curry everything is going to be just fine, Kururu." She grinned and stroked the back of his head, "Like mom used to say: Food makes everything better! It's my treat, all you can eat curry, what do you say?" she offered while she cuddled him.

"All I can eat?" he spoke, voice small and timid, almost unbelieving.

"All you can eat!" she confirmed and pulled back a little to look him in the face, "you can even order any desserts you want!" she grinned.

He stared at her with tearful eyes before a small chuckle escaped his lips, yellow fists moved to wipe away the wetness and a small sniffle followed, the Sergeant Major glanced up at her with a light grin, "You're… not going to ask for details?"

"No. Not unless you _want_ to talk about it, I won't force you. I can tell it is a very sensitive subject and I don't want to intrude." She stroked his cheek and smiled, glad to see he was bouncing back to normal, "So about that curry, you want to pick a place or shall I? I think we still have a few hours before launch." She grinned wider, a twinkle in her eyes.

"I know just the place," he grinned back, but then the smile faltered and he glanced at the door, "but Shupepe is still out there, right?"

Much to his surprise, his sister grinned even wider, "Hey, you aint the only one with tricks up his sleeve," she giggled.

She led him to the back of the bathroom where the broom closet was in the form of a hidden stall. Kururu saw a small hatch that looked like the laundry shoot, then gawked as his sister grabbed the handle and winked before jumping down. It seemed this thing was wide enough to allow individuals to slide down? Weren't they supposed to be smaller? Would someone the size of his sister be able to go down without trouble?

Nevertheless, feeling up to a bit of adventure, Kururu backed away from the closet to retrieve his glasses, not bothering to close the water he shut the heat regulator and let all the hot water run. Anyone who would try to come in now will have to boil their toes before reaching the stall. With a mischievous grin as the spark of mischief back to his face, he giggled his name sake for the first time in hours, before going into the closet, locking the door and then hopping down the shaft.

It was a slight loop-de-loop before he landed on a large basket, sheets and towels were sent flying when the bed-like cushion absorbed his fall.

His sister was there dusting herself and before he could say anything Rinono grabbed the nearest clean towel and pressed it against his head, rubbing him dry as if he was a child; either that or trying to ruffle his nonexistent hair, "Dry up, no need to leave a water trail everywhere we go," she laughed.

It was when Kururu pulled the towel off his head that he noticed they were somewhere in the backroom of the ship's docking bay, where the space computer was located; the laundry shaft was right above him which landed him right in front of the door. None of the maintenance teams were there, so they had the chance to sneak out before anyone saw them. Using the clean laundry the two made sure to dry themselves before lurking their way out of the Grand Star's garage and out to the main floor.

Kururu felt weird; light, but weird in a good way; it was hard to put into words.

Watching his sister sneak around to make sure they got to their destination undetected, a light, genuine smile curved his lips.

Maybe she was right, maybe once he got some food in his belly he'll be able to pull himself together, the melodrama was totally not his style.

**. .**

Lieutenant Garuru jumped when the loud shout of rage bellowed from the lower floor.

Seconds later Chief Medic Shupepe, soaked and dripping, came stomping into the bridge with a hot and livid sneer on his face, "I can't believe it! I just can't believe it! She of all people, how could she even- URGH!" he rambled on to himself in a more hushed slur while he made his way towards the Admiral's office, muttering and hissing something about shenanigans being pulled over his head, and something intangible the Lieutenant was unable to catch.

Giroro, who was in the middle of a conversation with his brother arched a brow and then reached up to push the goggles off his eyes, watching the angry Medic enter the office and slam the door shut. He didn't say anything at first and only when Tororo managed a small, boggled chuckle did the three look at one another, then shrug. Each turned their attention back to what they were doing as if the angry doctor had never interrupted them at all.

Tororo and Giroro were collaborating on a code to ensure security on their command stations, while Garuru sat between to be in on the whole thing.

"So if I lose control over the weaponry, you'll be able to trigger the safety lock?" the Corporal picked up the conversation from where they stopped, sending the young tadpole a skeptical look, "Wouldn't it be easier to try and regain control on them instead of locking them?"

"Pupu, if they're rendered useless it'll be easier to redirect attention elsewhere when the enemies see they cant use them either," Tororo replied, "and on the off chance of someone hacking the system to turn the weapons inside out, most of the guns have already been configured to have diverted range and blind spots, so they wont be able to rotate far enough to hit the ship's outer frame or main crisis areas, but that is not to say they would not be able to at least graze some less vital areas." He explained.

He then looked back to his screen and then started typing something with a cheeky smile, "Besides, your codes are so old fashioned I could hack them in my sleep, pu puu! Stuff this weak wouldn't be of any use to us at all."

Giroro huffed and turned to the screen in front of him, "Well I'm sorry for having more important things to do on a daily basis than rot my rump in front of a computer screen,"

"Pu! You wanna say that to my face, old man?" Tororo scowled.

Garuru resisted the urge to grin and took a step back; those two were going to bark at each other again, weren't they. This ought to be fun to watch…

"Look, all I'm saying is that I don't have time to waste on programming, it's not my forte, alright?" Giroro grumbled, annoyed how the little kid took offence to a lot of things, more so when it came down to his skills as a hacker. Talk about prideful.

"You just say that cause your skills suck," Tororo taunted with a grin.

"Keep that up and I'm tanning your tail, runt!" Giroro snarled.

"Even your threats are old fashioned! Pu puu!" he laughed and slapped the armrest to emphasize the humor, "I bet you think your old doohickeys are actually worth a dime! No wonder you and your reject platoon never took over Pekopon! I bet you're all as old fashioned as a cinderblock!"

Giroro snarled and jagged pointy teeth were brandished in brewing rage, but it didn't look like Tororo took much notice as he continued to giggle his tail off at the other. Garuru sighed and shook his head, it was clear Tororo was really developing a knack for getting his hide in danger, and for once the lieutenant had no intention of helping him out of this one. Aggravating Pururu was one thing, and making Zoruru flip out was another, but Giroro was not someone the child should mess with.

But perhaps the little rascal needed someone to teach him a lesson; Giroro would be more than enough to get the point across.

But of course, luck smiled upon the cheeky little runt as loud beeping erupted from somewhere in the room. Giroro's expression blanked and he started looking around for the source of the noise, only to realize it was coming from behind him. He reached into his pocket to pull out his communication device, a dark metal sphere with his symbol skull on the end of the bobbing antenna it had on top. Confused as to who would call him out of nowhere he pressed the sphere to his ear as he accepted the call.

"Hello?" he began, wondering who it could be, and Garuru watched as his little brother's eyes went wide, his expression lightened with a clear impression of joy, "Dororo! Hey, yes, I… uh," his expression softened, became awkward and then sheepish, "Y- yeah… about that, no, look it's just- what? No! No, it's nothing like that!" he hurried to look away from the others, expression nervous and flustered, "Look, could we talk later, I kin- wha- N- No! No nonono! That's not what I meant! C'mon! Doro- hello? Hello?"

He pulled the device away from his ear with a slight, annoyed scowl before he sighed in defeat and pocketed it, he turned to the others and at their expectant glances, Giroro waved a dismissive hand, he didn't want to talk about it.

Dororo was calling because he was upset no one told him Giroro had been selected for a special mission, and his childhood friend was saddened Giroro didn't have the time to talk to him. The Corporal hadn't even had the chance to get his words in before Dororo hung up, the red invader could tell he might have flipped the Trauma Switch on without trying. He will just have to figure out how to make it up to Dororo later, he did not need this guilt trip on his conscious right now, Kururu was aggravating him quite enough already.

In the same time, Giroro was surprised that while Dororo rambled on about how hurt he was Giroro didn't even call him, to learn that it had already been almost four weeks since he left, marking a month since he had been away, whereas he had been on the Grand Star at the total of five to six days so far. If he calculated it in solar hours that meant every three days on the Grand Star equaled a week on Pekopon, therefore one quarter of a day to him was a whole day to the remaining platoon.

If he had been gone for a month already, and since he hadn't even started the mission yet, when would he be able to go back to Pekopon in order to continue the invasion?

The red soldier contemplated picking up the phone to call the others, but he knew Kururu was with him on this task yet lurking elsewhere and being a brat. Tamama and Keroro were most likely up to no good, and since Dororo didn't mention anything of vital importance then the scarred Keronian would guess Natsumi had been doing fine on her own. After all, without Kururu pulling the strings Keroro wasn't much of a threat, unless she considered his pranks into the equation.

That was when he was startled out of his thoughts when Garuru clapped a hand to his shoulder, "Trouble back home?" he asked, casual yet curious.

"No, just Dororo calling to check in; I never got the chance to talk to him before I left so he was kind of upset about it. Keroro probably forgot to tell him all about Kururu and I leaving, anyway." He grumbled and then reached up to tug the goggles back down over his eyes.

The red brother wanted to say something more regarding their mission, and assassins, but he didn't think his sibling knew much about the tank or the Dark assassin arts, so it was best to keep it in until Kururu was in a cooperative mood. Who knew? Maybe when Kururu was in the Quarry he and Koii revealed something he could work with. Since the tank was their mission objective, if the hint that it was a monster then he had to be extra careful.

"From the look on your face is sounds like something more," Garuru drawled, fishing for something.

"He's just upset I left without telling him, is all." Giroro muttered and then settled his hands on the keyboard.

Garuru didn't say anything after that, while Tororo didn't care and continued on what they were doing. The Corporal, however, was very distracted. Instead of typing again he remained still for a good three minutes, silent and thinking.

Torn out of their task once more Shupepe stepped out of the office with a less aggravated but still cranky sneer, he marched towards the three and looked at the lieutenant, his clothes looked like they have been dried and ironed back into shape as if by magic, "I'm going to make sure everyone is present before we launch, whatever you're working on make it quick, we leave in four solar hours." He informed in a brisk tone and twirled away, his clothes flared with a ruffled flutter like a cape as he left.

"Yeesh, what's up _his_ ass?" Tororo muttered, annoyed at the Medic's display.

"By this point? It could be anything," Giroro replied with a snort of amusement.

He'd bet a pot of wasabi sauce Kururu was the reason the Medic was so riled up. Whatever happened after Shupepe went to talk to him must have backfired. Stuff like that would always happen with Kururu, the yellow demon was more than capable of irritating the ever loving sanity out of people, it was just a part of who he was. That thought seemed to be enough to twitch a smile on the corner of the corporal's lips; being a worry wart wasn't helping anyone, he needed to focus on the task at hand.

Garuru watched through the corner of his eye as Giroro's appearance seemed to slacken and relax, his little brother became more focused and continued typing once more. The lieutenant allowed a tiny smile to curve the corners of his mouth, glad to see that whatever was bothering his brother was gone now, everything was being set back on course.

In four solar hours they will finally leave the Grand Star and start their mission. Whatever awaited them on Wasuru TE would be revealed soon enough.

The only thing that nagged at him was Pururu and Zoruru's absence, he hoped those two were not being kept away for reasons other than what was obvious. True Pururu had managed a little less than an hour of her time to check on the Sergeant Major when he was unconscious, but she was called away soon after, not even given the chance to see her before she left.

For better or for worse, he was going to ensure everyone made it out of this alive, even if it was the last thing he'd do.


	16. Sea of Sand

**. o 0 Chapter Sixteen 0 o .**

Sergeant Major Kururu didn't remember much of his years as a child, only that he spent most of those days with one mundane thing or another.

He couldn't even remember what his days were like before his metamorphosis, only that he would spend hours upon hours in the library reading books, on in the lab messing around with beakers and concoctions. Sometimes, when his mother was willing to help him he'd mess around the kitchen and learn how to cook. As far as the kitchen was concerned Kururu considered it the kind of experiments you could eat, assuming they were made correctly.

He remembered the time he put pepper in the brownie dough, his mom laughed and ate it anyway saying it added to the chocolate. There was a time he put chocolate syrup in the noodles and Rinono was unable to eat it because it was too hot and sugary to the point it made his throat feel like its burning. Then there was the time he put salt in the tea kettle and his dad spat coffee all over the place.

After the metamorphosis, his experiments and exploring developed as days went by, perhaps faster than he or any of his family deemed possible. As his experiments grew bolder, so did his attitude.

He was no longer the quiet, timid and shy little blue child, the shade of rich yellow he had been granted allowed him a new persona, a near literal new leaf in his book to be who he always wanted to be. No more lurking in the shadows and being too shy to approach others, no longer afraid to say what he was thinking, no more being a wall flower.

He was once just a child with a dream, a dream to be the best there ever was and make his family proud. His mother, father, sister and brother, they were together and they were happy.

Until _she_ came and took him away, saying his potential was too outstanding to be left to wither, he needed someone who would nurture him into the legacy he was meant to become. He was taken from his family and placed in the custody of a woman he had only heard his parents talk about, and he had no idea how to feel about the whole situation. Being the obedient child that he was at the time, he agreed to go with her to avoid conflict as there was no need to put his family in any sort of danger if the woman wanted only him.

Little did he realize by doing that, he had become the martyr.

Ever since they were kids Shupepe and Rinono would look after him, more so his sister than his brother because she was always worried someone as tiny as him could get picked on, which was often the case. When he was small there were bullies in the neighborhood who knew he was pretty quiet, and even when they hit him he'd never shout or cry, so he was a target whenever caught alone. Rinono would never let him go anywhere alone because of that, and as much as it annoyed him he learned to get used to it.

Of course after his change, though it didn't do much to his size yet, his mind was able to figure out ways to beat the brawn with the brain one way or another. It wasn't easy, and it wasn't always clean, but he fought dirty whenever and however he had to.

And he loved it!

After he was placed under Koii's custody due to his brilliance and potential, his contact with his family had become sparse and far between, coming over on special days, when homesick and the like, or visiting them every now and then just to keep in touch. But… as he grew, so did the distance between them. By the time he finally finished his most crucial of training sessions he had expected to be greeted as warmly as they would usually would, but alas all he found was an empty house.

His parents were working late into the night, thinking of having an early retirement from their normal jobs to rest for the rest and take it easy for the rest of their old-age years, while Shupepe and Rinono were both employed normal jobs and owned their own apartments for that matter, that would tucker them out by the time he got home. It was rare he would ever go for a visit and find them, or if they were present they wouldn't have time to talk. Or even if they did have time it wouldn't be more than a small chat at the tea shop or a phone call away.

Kururu was aggravated, his family had been scattered due to their daily needs, growing up and leaving the nest, and could no longer stay in one place at any one time. Fed up with it he moved to a different town, not because he wanted to but because he had to.

His family was not the only reason he'd come back. Giroro who was in his last year of military training would often come along with Zeroro and Keroro as well, who he knew lived just down the block from his parents house, and the Sergeant Major always tried to be in the area if only to catch sight of those three.

Why? He had no idea. He had barely noticed them when he was a child, but it was only after they had changed his skin that he noticed how close they were.

Keroro was a sweet yet mischievous and playful imp much like Kururu himself, and although the green one was tardy he was also dependable when it came down to it, either by effort or dumb luck. Zeroro or Dororo was a strong and passionate guy with an unshakeable loyalty, his friendship to the red and green Keronians always tickled Kururu's fancy, he often wondered if he ought to try and pitch them against one another just to see who would win in a fight, yet the yellow child would soon change his mind.

He didn't want those three apart, it would just ruin the part he liked about them.

Although he constantly fancied the thought of tearing that friendship apart, he had no reason to work on that feeling, it just didn't mean anything to him nor make any sense. Why follow illogical feelings, anyway? It was silly to think about it.

Then there was Giroro. As hardheaded and brash as he was when they were little, Kururu had to admit there was something very sweet about the red oaf. Giroro, even as a kid had this strong personality that attracted him, the confidence and resolve had always been something Kururu wished he had had in those early years of his life, and though it may or may not have started out as a crush the Sergeant Major guessed it was pointless to argue.

He remembered the many times in his school years where the girls would fawn over Giroro while the boys flocked around Pururu. For a while everyone thought those two would make a perfect match, and Kururu knew for a fact Giroro had a crush on Pururu, but she was so daft she never looked at him that way and the red one didn't deal well with rejection, but he took it like a man regardless.

Boys into men, sometimes people would not realize he was technically half the Corporal's age, and unlike many of his generation Sergeant Major Kururu did not favor the thought of keeping his tail for the sake of preserving his potential. He already knew what his limits were, he knew what he was capable of, and sure as hell knew what the risks are.

At his age nothing would be a surprise, or so he was told, and yet every day since he joined the platoon seemed to have something in store to keep him entertained, or on his toes.

Kururu could not help but find it amusing Pekoponian would consider someone like him a guy with a possibly dark, and angst ridden past because of his unfriendly and despicable personality. He wasn't an angst-centered nerd nor was he an emotional one, perhaps they were just sorting him into their stereotyped labels that they could relate to.

He was a badass because he _wanted_ to, not because he had the sad sob story to back it up; he rather had a good childhood and while growing up, just a bit strained due to certain events that didn't really matter on the long run.

Today was no exception. Despite the emotional rollercoaster he had brought onto himself, after going through the angst with such fervor it helped cleanse his battered spirit of the weight that clung to it like a thick miasma. Kururu felt so much better, so much lighter, and so much more like his old self before all of that crap piled on him.

It looked like all he really needed was just as their mother suggested; _food!_

Gobbling so much curry helped get the problem off his mind long enough to forget it was even there. Also, with a sister willing to keep him distracted and conversion about anything and everything that had nothing to do with their mission, as well as play mischief with him, he couldn't be any happier. Rinono had always struck him as the reasonable no-nonsense person, and though rare and far between, he knew she could pull some pretty nifty pranks if she wanted to, she was just smart enough to know when to or not to pull said pranks.

Rinono peered over the rail from where she hid behind the vending machine and caught glimpse of an elite guard leaving, he was flustered and aggravated to have lost sight of them. He had caught them in the curry shop just a little after Kururu announced he could not have another bite. They had to skip dessert when the guards came to drag them back to their airship, but the pale orange female wasn't having any of that, instead she grabbed her brother and ran; or rather hauled him over her shoulder seeing he was too full to run.

Kururu and Rinono had been pretty much playing hide and seek with the guards for the past two or three hours, Chief Medic Shupepe was furious and demanded his wayward siblings be brought back to the vessel post haste. He did not want to announce it through the reception desk if only to save face. Rinono had no intention of going back until the very last minute, if Kururu didn't want to be there for any number of reasons, then she will help prolong this as long as possible.

All she knew was that the reason Kururu was upset resided on their ship, so the longer he didn't have to remember and face it the better. She had a hunch it was all about being with the Admiral, and she wouldn't really fault him, she was a scary lady when she wanted to be.

Regardless, as soon as the search party was out of sight she peered over the rail to make sure the coast was clear again, before turning to her much lighter sibling. He had had enough time to digest all the food and could run on his own again; not that she'd mind carrying him, he just found it embarrassing and asked her not to, not in public at least. Signaling that the coast was clear the two siblings lurked through the crowded ward towards the nearest elevator, stifling grins of victory on their faces.

As soon as they set foot to the next floor they laughed and hurried out of sight, ducking into the nearest bushes they could find just in case they were being followed.

Rinono plopped on the grass with a flushed laugh and leaned back against a tree, "Whew, that was quite the work out,"

"Ku, you can say that again; it's almost as if all the curry I ate is gone now, kuu kuku!" the yellow one chortled and dropped to the grass, then rolled over to his back. Patches of light and shade shone down on him, giving his glasses a gleam and glitter as they reflected the warming sunlight. "We won't be able to run away forever, though. When Shupepe finds us he's gonna blow it." He turned and stared at her for a moment, placid.

"I'd like to see him try," she grinned, stretched out her legs, she patted her lap and her expression softened. "Come here,"

Kururu rolled onto his belly and pushed to his hands and knees to crawl towards her, more than happy to plop his head onto her lap; his sister was very cushy and made for a very nice pillow. She giggled and stroked his head, her fingers trailed lines down his skull, soothing and comforting.

If anyone saw him Kururu would swear he'd die of embarrassment, but for now he didn't care. It wasn't often he'd get to cuddle with his sister and he wanted to treasure this for as long as it lasted.

He liked this, just the two of them sharing family time together. He missed this feeling so much…

**. .**

Elsewhere, a rather infuriated and almost frothing in the mouth Medic slammed his hand to the wall with a vicious snarl, "What do you mean you can't find them? Get your asses back out there and bring them back this instant!" he demanded, upper lip twitching as well as his lower eyelids.

Tororo ducked in his seat to avoid being seen when the livid Chief Medic stomped back into the office.

Giroro watched with a bit of tense nervousness, Shupepe was getting scarier by the minute. "And Keroro said **I** needed anger management…"

"Pu, you and me both," the recruit commented, then threw a small item at the other.

Giroro caught it with ease and seeing it was a flash-drive he wasted no time to plug it into his machine. One second to process the info was enough for his main screen to flicker and for six windows to appear, dividing his screen into even parts, and each screen had something on it whether scripts of security or a 3D display of his seat as well as the system it supported. Fiddling with what was written he looked over the scripted codes and general outlook.

Giroro arched a brow and whistled, "I admit, you're pretty good at this," he praised and adjusted his goggles, he started working with the code to tweak it up a bit in order to make sure it doesn't conflict anything in his own coding, "Though I'm gong to have to cut this loop shorter a line or two, if you loop it more than three it might take extra work to fix it later," he amended.

"Pupu, I thought of that; if you scroll down about three pages you'll find there is a branch linked to that code," the tadpole grinned when the Corporal did as suggested and gave an impressed reaction, Tororo felt pretty good about himself being able to impress others with his awesome skills. "if anyone tries to hack this they'll be in for a big surprise! Puu pupuu!" he chortled in glee.

"Huh, so you say, just wait until Kururu gets here and we'll see about that," the Corporal grinned, somewhat amused when the tadpole stopped laughing to huff in irritation.

"Where is that old man, anyway?" the recruit stood on his chair and leaned over the backrest, "Captain, any news from the others yet?" he called out.

Lieutenant Garuru, who had taken the Admiral's seat for the sake of keeping everything checked until she got there, glanced up from the screen to the impatient boy addressing him, "Nothing yet, Taruru is helping the guards track them down, he hadn't come out with anything thus far," he answered and then started typing something on the keyboard, "they were last seen on the first floor in the main hall just outside the Grand Star's docking bay, so they couldn't have gotten too far."

"Also, because the bracelet configuration had not been finalized they don't have any signals for us to follow; Sergeant Major Kururu and corporal Giroro have yet to put theirs on. All six need to be present before it's a complete circle." He added.

Giroro could tell his brother was a bit miffed that such scenario was to play before the preparations were done. "Have you tried to look for them in the plantation floor? The gardens provide a lot of hiding spots," Giroro called out, not bothering to turn away from his screen, "Kururu likes to beat around the bush, try there." He added.

Garuru said nothing; instead he directed his attention to the keyboard and typed something down. Tororo, not getting any reply pouted and plopped back down onto his seat, minutes later the three of them were immersed into their own tasks and the bridge went quiet for a fair few minutes.

Tororo flicked a security camera to view three or four mechanics working on adjusting the engines he and the Corporal pointed out, though he didn't get the Admiral's commentary on their notice he guessed it didn't matter if she was willing to tweak things up a bit. Also there were workers refilling the water tank seeing the heat regulator combusted and there was hot boiling water all over the bathroom. Not only did it need to be drained and recycled, the bathroom needed some fixing too. Everything was too hot for them to touch so it took a while to get all the repairs done.

Then, Garuru chuckled, "Giroro, some times you amaze me,"

"I take it they found him?" Giroro grinned, not turning around.

The lieutenant looked up, "Yes, I'm surprised you were able to figure out where they were,"

"Eh, Kururu isn't that hard when you get to know him better; he's not as complicated as seems to be." He murmured with a shrug, unaware his brother couldn't see it, "I'm surprised it took me this long to figure that out; we've been in the same team for so long…" he drawled, voice dropping lower and lower, then from a whisper into silence as the red devil corporal was too deep into his task of programming to pay attention to anything else.

Tororo stared from one brother to the other, a light frown on his face. Corporal Giroro and Sergeant Major Kururu seemed to know each other well enough, and for some reason it made him feel a little threatened. He couldn't really explain it, but it was more the mindset of 'the friend of my enemy is my enemy', if it could even be called that.

The salmon-red tadpole was also a little disappointed; he rather liked bickering with the corporal. Though just as much an old man as the Sergeant Major, the red one was just a bag of hot air, it didn't give the young hacker the impression Giroro would work on his threats, not at someone at Tororo's age.

Did that mean the Corporal had a soft spot for kids? Tororo wasn't sure, but he was going to exploit and abuse that possibility as much as he could. He could get away with it when hey; he'll enjoy it for as long as it would last!

It was a good thirty minutes later that the elite team sent to find the missing members returned, and somehow Giroro was not at all surprised at the cheeky, giddy and humored grin on that yellow face. Even Rinono seemed pretty pleased with herself despite Shupepe's infuriated scolding. The two siblings turned a deaf ear to his yelling which only served to anger him further. Kururu was very entertained and was not showing the slightest hint of shame or guilt.

Giroro had stepped out of his seat, goggles still on he had pushed them up again to watch the lecture play out. He couldn't explain it but he felt a great sense of relief wash over him when he saw Kururu. The Sergeant Major was behaving so much more like his usual pesky self, meaning Rinono had somehow managed to fix what was wrong.

During Shupepe's yelling, the red and yellow ones gaze met. How would Giroro know considering Kururu's glasses? He wasn't sure, but he felt the eyes on him and it did not disturb him at all. The scarred warrior only smiled with a hint of teeth, glad to know the yellow imp was back within the ranks. How Kururu felt about it however, he had no idea. Kururu only chuckled his namesake before murmuring something that silenced his brother, jaw dropped and eyes bugged out, it took three elite guards to stop him from outright leaping at Kururu to rip him apart.

It was then Garuru decided to intervene and with a hushed conversation Shupepe collected what's left of his pride and dignity, he led his siblings to the office. Garuru watched the three siblings go, only after they went out of sight did he return to the Admiral's seat and continued working.

Of course, among the men who had helped locate the two missing agents was Taruru, the bright colored blue youth was excited to be in the vessel and wasted no time talking everyone's ears off how he was envious they got to go on such a cool ride, while he had to stay as back up. Garuru, perhaps needing silence to be able to work, asked the First Class Private to go check with Chief Medic Pururu and locate Lance Corporal Zoruru, he wanted his team assembled before it was time to leave.

Obliged to comply Taruru saluted his captain and hurried off, missing the loud and relieved sighs from the other two. Giroro and Tororo both knew Taruru was a good soldier, but they could only handle so much talking and nonsense, before they'd want to scream at him to keep his yap shut so they could at least hear themselves think!

Tororo looked at the security camera again, amused that the water tank had been emptied half way with nothing but hot boiling water before the maintenance team was able to get there; from the camera feed they had just finished refilling the tank and it was all ready for it was time to launch. The recruit considered planting security cameras everywhere, but then figured it was pointless since it'll be invading his own privacy as well.

The hacker was still concerned for the extended absence of the gray-skinned assassin, though.

It was unlike Zoruru to just poof without warning, not for this long at least. Lieutenant Garuru looked like he was expecting the assassin to return as well, which meant Zoruru had not run off on his own, it might have been a mission the tadpole had not been aware of. The captain seemed uneasy at the prolonged absence, but the hacker hoped the Lance Corporal was just taking his time; Zoruru was a tough nugget, it'll take a lot to bring him down.

He sure hoped that tin-can was doing alright, the last thing he'd want is waste time and energy repairing that body; Zoruru seemed to take his service for granted!

If Zoruru does come back in pieces the hacker decided a dozen of high quality cheese cakes will do nicely as payment, he hadn't had any of those in a while. He needed to save up on his allowance for other things, Zoruru could treat him with food for as long as he could weasel out.

**. .**

Inside the office, the three siblings sat down on the floor in front of the couch where the Admiral lay half awake.

Where Rinono and Shupepe seemed respectful, Kururu was laid down to his side with his back to his sister, paying not a lick of respect to the higher ranked woman. And yet, the three held a grim expression, none of them were pleased by what had been shared.

"So what are we supposed to do?" Shupepe spoke, having a good idea what this was all about. "If you retire after this mission wouldn't that bring up a battle for power? The Keron Army had been kept tame for so long due to your efforts, I don't think either Rinono or I are ready to try and claim that spot. I'm afraid that only leaves- ?"

"Hey! Don't look at me; I don't want anything to do with this!" Kururu grumbled as he threw a look at his brother. "And don't give me that legacy junk, I'm not interested!"

Rinono hurried to try and reason with her brother, very upset that her hard work to help him bounce back to his old self had been shot down so soon, "Kururu, you're the only one with the power to keep everything balanced; sure the monarchy is not inherited but right now you're the only one eligible to take the Admiral's place."

Kururu, fed up with the pressure pushed off the floor to sit Indian style, "Listen, just because we're her grandchildren doesn't mean the Keron Army is willing to just hand it over!" he argued, aggravated and annoyed at their nearsighted vision, "Not to mention thanks to a certain someone I have enough black streaks on my record to prevent me from asking for the position; I aint no assassin, and though I am good with the Magi arts, who is to say I'd even want any of this?"

Admiral Koii chose to speak, drawling due to still being somewhat under the intoxication of her medication withdrawal, "Kururu, you need to understand that this is not just about the Keron Army," she began, drew in a long breath to expand her lungs for easier breathing, then continued, "due to a series of events you children already know, this mission would be my last, and though I can not step down from my position, I also need to do so before things go awry."

"Many things have happened since I took this job, I knew what I was getting myself into, but something had to be done." She tried to reason, voice wary but firm, "To prevent the struggle for power from the others one had to remain in the shadows to ensure no power corrupt officers found their way up the ranks." She looked at Kururu with a wane grin, "I may have slipped one or two, but I've always had you three helping me pick up the pace, and for that I thank you."

Kururu looked away, not wanting to meet her gaze.

"We invade planets, yes, but we do not seek to destroy, we seek to claim and to expand our reaches. Other planets that refuse bring destruction upon themselves." She paused to look at the three before her, "though it might have been how things were at the time when I was but a mere recruit, I'm afraid I'm a bit too old and old fashioned to keep up with it anymore." She took a moment to close her eyes, getting pretty tired, "The Army needs new blood and youth to keep up with the developments of today. It needs someone aware of the generation to come to keep it alive and balanced."

She then looked at the yellow one refusing to look back at her, "I have no intention to die on this mission, but I do feel my end is near; Kurru."

"**_Stop_**_ Calling me that!_" he bellowed, making his siblings jump in surprise.

Even Koii jumped and her eyes widened, before a small laugh raked her chest, "My, as defiant as always! That's good." She chuckled, weary and teary eyed, but otherwise pleased, "You'd make for a fine leader, I'm sure."

"How many times do I have to repeat: I do not want to be Admiral! If anyone is going to corrupt the army it'd be me!" he argued, well aware of what he was capable of and not wanting to risk everything the Admiral had worked for because he didn't want to stick to her original plan.

He didn't want this kind of responsibility! It was too much and he didn't think he could _handle_ it!

She only flashed a toothy grin, "It is because I know you are worried of corrupting it, that I am sure you will strive not to, Kururu." She hushed, and then struggled a bit to sit up on the couch. With Shupepe's help she leaned against the backrest with a tired but mellow smile, "I understand responsibility was never something you wanted to deal with, but you can't avoid it forever. I could have just recommended any other soldier for this role, but I am afraid I've not been able to find anyone I find eligible, nor worthy."

She looked at the three, and Shupepe put his hands on hers, she smiled and gave his hold a light squeeze, "But you three however have each others backs, not just for each other, but also for the homeland. You are the only ones I can think of who I would trust this job to. All the other officers have given me signs of corruption and I can not trust them with a job or mission this delicate."

Kururu looked at her for a long minute before he heaved a loud sigh, "I'm not gonna be able to talk you out of this, am I." he stated, not a question, he looked a bit disappointed.

"Unless Shupepe or Rinono show that they are able to handle the burden, I am afraid you're the only one able to handle this," she replied, a small apologetic curl to her lips.

"Admiral Kururu, huh…" he murmured; as much as the title had a ring to it, he knew without a doubt he was going to regret accepting it.

Everything he had worked for during the past years on Pekopon would be pointless, he will be giving up his freedom for the sake of the invasion, and there will be no room for play.

Play time was over, it was now a gambling game with fate.

**. .**

It had been over an hour when the three siblings had stepped out of the office, each looking more weary than the other.

A while earlier Giroro had located the coffee machine in the small café-bar spot at the back of the bridge; there was a small door behind one of the guards who were oblivious to it, and stepping past the threshold the Corporal found a small stairway that led into a small room. In that room was a U-shaped counter with a massive fridge and a selection of wine on the shelves covering the wall, and the coffee machine was on the far side of the tabletop.

Once he acquired the hot drinks he made his way up to the bridge again and then offered his brother a cup and was taking a sip from his hot mocha when the three siblings reemerged. He had expected some sort of greeting, or an explanation to what the fuss was all about, but all he received was silence.

Kururu walked right past him as if he wasn't even there, the yellow Keronian hopped into his assigned seat and started getting his station working. Rinono and Shupepe were just as quiet, they all went to their seats and started setting everything for launch. Lieutenant Garuru said nothing since he as well as the Corporal could tell asking questions was not possible, whatever happened in the office was not to be spoken of, at least not for the time being.

Ten minutes afterwards the Admiral arrived looking weary but otherwise all right. She had her helmet back on and looked as dignified as ever as if her mishap with the medication never happened. She made her way to the captain seat, Garuru was about to step down and let her claim her position as the leader of this mission, and a higher ranked member, when she gestured for him to stay where he was while she took his seat instead.

She looked at the other three who were unaware of what had transpired in the office and managed a strange smile, "Due to minor setbacks, Lieutenant Garuru and Sergeant Major Kururu will lead the shuttle launch. Now that all preparations are complete I ask that you all take position, we will be leaving in fifteen minutes." She announced, voice bold and clear despite her exhausted looks. She leaned back in her comfortable seat, her eyes turned to the wary Corporal.

Everyone responded with a loud salute and turned their attention to their screens, but Giroro's ears were more than keen to notice Kururu's tone missing. Choosing to disregard that for the moment he took his seat again and put the paper cup in a holster so it would not spill, then started working on getting everything ready for launch. Giroro felt just a tiny bit nervous regarding the puzzling scenario that had played out, but otherwise he was in full control.

With the Ship's engines whirring and the wings and machines all in operational order, security codes activated and passwords conformed to unlock weaponry granting access to the Corporal and Lieutenant, it took the maintenance teams some work to clear the runway from all machinery and able bodied members, and to board the ship to join the crew on their destination. The elite guards who were also included in the mission took their positions as well.

Though Garuru could not help but think so many members onboard were not necessary… why had the Admiral enlisted so many working hands in this? True the ship was massive but she could have cut the numbers in half, couldn't she?

Giroro and Tororo buckled their seatbelts as did everyone else, and then worked on piloting the massive beast of a jumbo aircraft in an agonizing slow speed out of its docked position and out towards the runway.

Koii turned to Garuru, the look on his face made her frown, "Is something on your mind, Lieutenant? You seem distracted." She inquired, eyes hidden under her bright goggles.

Garuru looked at her and hesitated about answering, not sure how to go about it. On one hand they were about to leave and Taruru had yet to report back, Garuru had no idea about Pururu or Zoruru whereabouts, nor if they were in a state where they could get in touch with him. It looked like he would not be able to get in touch anyway and now that the Admiral was here, it was pointless. He forced a smile and shook his head, giving her no answer, and she did not press and let the conversation stop.

It was better to play it safe and be oblivious, Garuru will be able to find a piece to fit this strange jigsaw puzzle get to the bottom of it soon enough…

Wings aligned and engines ready for launch, all systems go, greens lights on, as soon as the Admiral gave the 'blast off' commanded the engine was revved up to full power, the ship launched slow and steady for only a few seconds before it picked up the speed, soon roaring through the runway and out the opened garage door to dash though the wide open space with a trail of gold trailing behind it, and then vanishing out of sight like a twinkling star.

The jump of speed had the entire ship somewhat rattling and shaking from the inside yet everything remained intact, the sensors were all stable even if the glass and metal pieces made alarming noises with the force of the ship's speed across the endless reaches of the galaxy. It was moments later when the speed was leveled down that everything settled and the ship was still in one piece, succeeding in launching with no problems for the first time.

Giroro adjusted his goggles and continued to work on the controls, the wings had to remain stable and the speed needed to not wear down the engines, the heat regulation, power control, and venting systems all seemed to be in perfect order.

"All lights are clear, everything is in operational order, ship is steady and no problems are present." Giroro spoke and flicked a few switches, going into pilot mode he wanted to make sure he had all the control windows visible to keep track of everything, "Requesting coordinates for our destination," he then added, not quite sure who to address the question to, his brother or the Admiral.

"Sergeant Major Kururu, planetary map and constellation rout should be available on your machine, send a cope to the Corporal via local area network." The purple Lieutenant spoke in a collected tone, "Recruit Tororo, check maneuverability and range on all weaponry, let me know if anything is not working as it should." he then added, paused for a second and then looked at the Admiral with a passive look, "Since launching is a success, would it not be best you retire in the cabin, ma'am?"

"Oh hush, I'm fine," the Admiral waved a dismissive hand, "I'll go when I'm tired. Besides, it's too early to call it a success. We may have had a flawless launch that is not to say any issues will not present themselves soon enough." She got comfortable in the seat and crossed one leg over the other, getting comfortable.

"Map sent and information submitted, estimated travel time would approximately be thirty six Keron solar hours." The yellow Sergeant Major stated in a loud impassive tone, and then leaned back against his seat, a rather bored look on his face, "Ku, this hunk of junk is pretty slow, shouldn't it be faster than this?" he muttered and propped his feet on the edge of the keyboard.

The Admiral said nothing, instead she leaned a bit against one of the arm rests and propped her cheek on a fist.

Lieutenant Garuru figured he should try to keep the children civil, there was no need to upset the already weary woman, "Corporal Giroro, status?"

"At our speed and the weight we're carrying it'll be thirty six Keron-solar hours just as Ku- Sergeant Major Kururu stated," the red one replied and pulled on a handle next to the armrest, adjusted a few knobs and then started typing something in his keyboard, "All systems are clear and nothing looks out of the ordinary, wings are holding steady and engines are working in order." He continued, taking a moment he typed some more on the triad panel before hitting a large key and the window vanished.

Garuru didn't even flinch when the holographic window appeared around elbow level near his keyboard, he touched the former to toggle the panel closer in order to read what it read. There was a full detailed status report with feedback from the entire system.

"If everything stays like this we should arrive at our destination without any problems." Giroro paused, "thanks to the adjustments made with the back engines the speed capacity had been slightly altered to allow a three percent more output with a better five present heat regulation." He added.

"I am rather pleased you boys caught that, none of the other engineers seemed to notice." the Admiral praised while looking at the purple leader, "you must have keen eyes to notice a flaw so crucial."

Garuru nodded once and allowed himself a small smile, "Corporal Giroro was the one to notice, Admiral, he insisted on addressing the issue before we depart." He admitted, not wanting to take the gratitude from his more deserving brother, "Although I also have to say the mechanics did a fine job fixing it so soon as well."

"I like to collect the finest of the best; the Keron army will not afford any less." She replied, then with a light fanged grin looked at the seat the rather silent Corporal occupied, "I do have to say, from what I've read about you, Corporal Giroro, it seems you are far more an admirable soldier than the Sergeant Major led me to believe."

Much to Giroro's confusion Kururu made a strange sound and flinched as if about to fall off his seat, the yellow one clutched there arm rests and twirled to the Admiral as if about to snap his own neck, face blank but masking horror.

Kururu felt his heart about to burst out of his chest… did Shupepe sell him out?

Giroro wasn't sure how to respond at first, startled with the Sergeant Major's random and strange reaction, and flustered at being praised. "Thank you, it is an honor to have been selected to serve under your leadership, Admiral Koii." He replied. Why was he getting nervous? Giroro felt his throat go dry so he reached out for the now lukewarm cup of mocha.

"The pleasure is all mine," the elderly woman replied, and Garuru arched a brow at the cheeky grin stretching across her face, "I rather think someone like you would make a fine son-in-law."

It came to no surprise to Garuru when Giroro spat out the coffee with a cough and sputter, wheezing and rasping incoherent garbled words while the hot drink assaulted the inside of his nose, and almost trying to burn his nostrils.

Where Shupepe sported a boggled reaction, Rinono covered her face to hide a fluster.

Tororo's laughter did not help matters any, but the captain guessed it was to be expected.


	17. Silent Wails

**. o 0 Chapter Seventeen 0 o .**

The galaxy had always been a realm of mystery as far as Giroro was concerned, as there were far more aliens out there than Fuyuki could ever comprehend, yet the Corporal couldn't help but wonder. Was it possible for a person to feel so alienated at himself yet still know it was just him being overwhelmed? Piloting a ship towards their destination was something he had done many times before, but Giroro felt out of place and had no way of explaining that feeling.

Perhaps those thoughts made no sense to anyone but himself, but whatever the case was, he hoped it would explain itself soon. It was giving him a headache.

Philosophy was never his forte. The simpler it sounded, the more complex it sometime was. It was the kind of thing Dororo was good at. All the more reason the Corporal wished the assassin was included in this mission, as it would have spared him the headache that way.

Corporal Giroro scratched the small speck of dried mocha he missed from the armrest of his seat, his attention turned to the monitors in front of him once more.

He was piloting with Shupepe as his backup in the seat that was occupied by Tororo a short while ago, and Garuru was in the Admiral's seat on the platform behind him. Admiral Koii had turned in to rest an hour earlier and though Kururu hadn't said anything, it was clear he wanted to have a word with her by going into the office after her and staying there ever since. There were no noises coming from the cabin so Giroro thought it was safe to assume they weren't trying to kill each other.

Rinono and Tororo were allowed to leave the bridge to make sure nothing was out of place, and to ensure all other members of the maintenance team were present. Plus the young hacker had gotten tired of sitting for so long and needed to stretch his legs.

Giroro found himself thinking of Dororo once again. He couldn't explain it, he really wanted to take a break and call Keroro. If it had already been a month since he left the least he could do was call and see how everyone was doing, and maybe check on their progress regarding the invasion of Pekopon, right?

"Giroro," the Lieutenant's voice came from somewhere behind him, closer than the red warrior remembered it to be. His brother was standing right next to him. "It has already been three hours since launch, why don't you go stretch your legs and let me take over for the time being." Garuru leaned against the side of the seat and spoke in a more casual tone, "Sergeant Major Kururu and I can handle it from here."

Giroro looked at him with a confused frown, then leaned over the opposite side of the pilot seat to look at the commander's nest behind him. Much to his surprise Kururu was there working on the control panel and messing around the keyboards. When did the yellow invader step out of the Admiral's office, and why hadn't the Corporal noticed? Had he been so distracted that he missed something like that?

A displeased scowl wrinkled his face, but Giroro shook it off with a forced smile. He looked at his brother and shrugged a shoulder. "Yeah, good idea, my wrists were getting cramped anyway, a stretch should do them some good." He flicked some switches on the control panel and then unbuckled the seatbelt, took of the goggles, stepped out of the pilot seat and then offered his brother the headgear.

Garuru accepted them and put them on, adjusting the strap to fit since his hat was different from Giroro's. He settled into the seat and was a little surprised to find it so comfy. "This seat is quite plush." He pressed his hand against the cushions below.

Giroro managed a more genuine toothy grin while he stretched his arms over his head. "You'll sink into it in a minute or two." He rolled his shoulders with a grunt, then spoke while looking from one side of the bridge to the other. "So where is everyone?"

"Recruits Rinono and Tororo are in the storage checking supplies. Chief Medic Shupepe is in the second dormitory checking on the rest of the crew. Most of the guards have gone into the office with the Admiral." Garuru paused, flicked some more switches and then took the handle with one hand and wrote some codes on the triad keyboard with the other. He turned to his younger brother and said with a passive tone, "Go check with Tororo, he and Chief Medic Shupepe ought to have the last bracelets available, have them finish up the process with the Sergeant Major so we can be sure things run smoothly, just in case."

"Any special function I should be aware of?" Giroro leaned a bit more against the side of the seat, still keeping an eye on the screens.

Garuru leaned back. "Due to a number of possible setbacks we may not be able to keep in touch, therefore I decided to make sure the six of us can find each other in case we become separated." He raised a hand to show his cuff to the Corporal so he could see what the item looked like.

Garuru rotated the ring around and showed three tiny sockets at the lower base of it where a plug could be inserted. "The bracelets contain chips with tracking signal functions, among other things. Plus, you can configure them to connect with your gallery in case you need an item on the spot. Unfortunately that will limit you to the small weapons." He lowered his hand and went back to working with the keyboards and screens.

"So does the rest of the crew get any of that?" Giroro was curious to know what his brother was thinking. To think so far ahead, was Garuru suspecting something to happen?

"They get a different type. Since we may have to undergo fieldwork the bracelets will keep you in touch with your group so as long as you're within range." The Lieutenant drawled on, distracted as he scrolled through pages of status reports and feedback to gather a general overview of their current status.

Not wanting to lose the line of thought with his brother, Giroro straightened up a bit and spoke a little louder. "Does the Admiral have one?"

Much to his surprise Garuru stilled for a second then turned to Giroro with a slight perplexed look and the hint of a scowl, fangs shown as the corners of those lips were downcast. "I have requested the Admiral to put on a different type of bracelet as well, but I do not recall seeing her wearing it."

"Kuku, she's wearing it under the sleeve cuff." Kururu decided it was a good time to speak up. He was leaning sideways on the armrest with a fist propped against his cheek. He had been admiring Giroro's assets while he was leaning against the seat and it put the Sergeant Major in a giddy mood. The Corporal had such a nice back line to compliment those shoulders, it brought a cheeky grin to his face. "I'm gonna have to sit here until Shupepe shows face, so why don'tcha go look for him. The faster we get those bracelets done the better."

Giroro cast a suspicious look at the other. He did not comment and instead nodded once, then headed towards the lower floor.

He needed to find Tororo and Rinono at any case. If they were still in the storage room he may be able to check on his gallery to make them accessible. While working on the Queen Bee setting he found he had to register some code into the system to be able to insert them at all, meaning he had to write down the code for each and every piece in order to register them into the weapon manifest.

Also, once he got the bracelet on he'd need to link them with the matter transporter, assuming anyone would be willing to tell him where that engine was even placed on that goliath of a plane. As humongous as the Sparrow was, Giroro noticed the pathways were a bit narrow. It made him wonder what was hogging all the space considering the interior design. Shouldn't this beast be roomier?

Pulled out of his thoughts, the Corporal didn't get any further than a few steps past the stairway when he heard the sound of sliding doors. Someone had either entered or exited the restroom so he hurried his pace to see who it was.

Luck smiled as it turned out to be Tororo stepping out. Distracted by adjusting his helmet and glasses he did not notice the Corporal approaching until his elder spoke.

"Oy, Recruit." Giroro brandished a fanged smile when Tororo jumped and turned to him in such surprise his helmet slipped and plunked over Tororo's eyes, almost knocking the glasses out of place. The hacker sputtered something unintelligible under his breath and shifted it back upright, a slightly irate scowl on his face. Giroro didn't mean to startle him, but at least it served to gain the young tadpole's attention. "I was told to remind you about something regarding bracelets?" He said in a teasing tone.

"Oh, pupu, sure, I think I left it below." Tororo's grin twitched just once.

Nevertheless he followed the recruit down the next flight of steps to the storage room, which was separated from the hangar by a large garage door. The Corporal didn't take long to notice Chief Medic Shupepe and Recruit Rinono standing next to a massive crate, with their fists to their hips as if mulling over a conundrum. While Tororo went into the back room, Giroro headed towards them in order to ask what they were doing, then noticed the large label pasted onto the side of the crate.

"Curry buns?" he blurted out when he recognized the sticker. This was the brand Kururu liked when they were on Pekopon. He'd know those colors anywhere, considering the hassle he had gone through to get them one time.

"Yeah, it looks like the Admiral is trying to win Kururu's favor; she bought an awful lot of these." Shupepe grumbled and motioned a hand towards two more giant crates packed next to the one they were standing at, and then turned to the wide-eyed, slack-jawed Corporal. "I wonder if they would even last. Kururu could dig through this within a week."

"Don't be ridiculous, he could gobble it all within a day if he wanted to, he just knows better than to do that." Rinono rolled her eyes, then turned to Giroro with a lopsided smile. "But in any case, since you're down here I take it the Lieutenant's piloting shift already started?"

Giroro closed his mouth and then answered her question with a simple nod and hum. Tororo arrived around then with what looked like a briefcase balanced on his head and offered it to the Chief Medic. Shupepe accepted it with a small thank you and then placed it on top of a nearby crate. He input a password and clicked the clasps open, revealing the last two bracelets remaining from the set.

Giroro looked at the smooth rings and noticed that inside the briefcase's interior was padded, and the items in mention were aligned in a circle, or rather a hexagon with a spot for a seventh ring in the center. He took a guess that one belonged to the Admiral.

What caught the Corporal's attention, however, was the large symbol of the Keron Army emblazoned on the padding, as well as a strange new addition on the upper part of the case. It looked like a hollowed star with a crescent arch facing down drawn below it, along with the smaller star-and-tail marking that higher-ranked Lieutenants wore on their chest, except the two pieces were merged together as one. He was not sure where he had seen that marking before; it looked very familiar.

Shupepe picked up the ring and offered a hand to the Corporal. Giroro stared at the extended palm for a moment before realizing what the Medic wanted. He reached out with his hand but did not place it into the other's palm. Shupepe gave a lopsided smile, well aware of what he was thinking, and took Giroro's wrist. He clasped the ring around it and then turned it counter-clockwise until there were three loud clicks, each softer than the one before.

Giroro twitched his fingers when he felt the brace hug his skin, not too tight as to hurt nor too loose. The Medic let go and Giroro felt a light yet noticeable weight against his joint. He could turn the bracelet around without tugging on the flesh. He gave his wrist a shake and swore he heard something jingle inside.

Shupepe closed the briefcase and without bothering to lock it, he lifted it off the crate. "Rinono, make sure everything is in place and meet us on the bridge, please. Recruit Tororo and I need to get this last one on Kururu before we finalize the signals." He walked towards the stairway leading to the upper level. Rinono only managed a simple nod before Shupepe turned away from her completely, and she watched him motion for the Corporal to follow.

Tororo and Giroro walked side by side a fair distance behind the Medic. Giroro glanced at the tadpole once or twice when he saw the helmet had shifted sideways. Tororo would adjust it every time as if it was tilting on its own. The Corporal thought the kid might need a new hat, the helmet seemed too big for him.

Back at the bridge, Shupepe was the first to approach the Sergeant Major by placing the briefcase on the free desk space next to the commander's seat. Giroro could tell from where he stood Kururu was not at all pleased at being disturbed by his brother, or having his workspace taken over. Of course, that was until he saw the strange toothy grin Shupepe sported. It did not bode well when Kururu's following silence shifted a second later into a devious smirk, and a chuckle trailed out of his mouth.

Next the Medic gestured for the Corporal to come closer while he popped open the briefcase, and Tororo stayed close behind.

Giroro watched Kururu rotate the seat to look at him funny. Another chuckle escaped him as if they were getting ready for the pranking of a lifetime. One minute Giroro was watching Shupepe clasp the bracelet on Kururu's wrist, and the next he was caught by surprise when Shupepe took his hand and yanked him closer to put his hand into Kururu's waiting palm.

Giroro felt a small electric spark go up his spine at the physical contact, and it was a disturbing sensation at that. Kururu only squeezed Giroro's hand with a mischievous, widening grin, while Shupepe held the two bracelets they wore close to one another, trying to align the socket locations together.

The longer the Corporal had to smother the discomforting tingle of goose bumps prickling every inch of his body, the longer he thought of the fact he was holding hands with Kururu lingered.

Shupepe reached into the briefcase and shoved his hand under the padding to pull out a small split-wire, revealing to the Corporal an assortment of items were hidden within. He plugged the short wire heads into the middle socket of each ring, and a set of small hand-sized holographic screens appeared above each bracelet showing three blank graphs. The Medic pinched the small box connecting the two plugs together and it popped out a tray. He picked out a tiny chip from the briefcase and inserted it into the tray before clicking it back into the box.

The Medic twirled the plugged-in wire head around on Kururu's wrist-ring as if it were a dial, and on two of the three screens the group could see three wavy lines appear and change speed and tempo as the Medic worked on it. Once the wavy lines were centered with an even-paced tempo, it showed a small green dot in the top corner, confirming it had pinned down Kururu's body signature. Shupepe turned to Giroro's ring and worked on identifying his signal next.

Tororo's eyes widened and a small confused 'pupu?' escaped his lips as he watched. Giroro's tempo and waves were more frantic than he expected, giving Shupepe a hard time trying to pin them down, as dialing through the waves was near impossible. While the Medic looked frustrated and perhaps amused at the graph going wild, Tororo looked at the Corporal and tried not to laugh. The Lieutenant's brother looked like he wanted to be anywhere else from the way his hand was shaking, compared to Kururu's placid body language.

Giroro felt his blood rush through his veins, causing a subtle amount of sweat to build on his skin, and noticeable color to his cheeks. He wasn't embarrassed or angry, but agitated in a way he was unable to describe. His showing fangs, twitchy brows and scowl were more than a clear sign he did not enjoy what Kururu was doing.

The uncomfortable feeling of Kururu's thumb brushing ever so slowly on the back of his hand left him feeling exposed, and set off alarms in the back of his mind. It felt like he was being molested and he did not like it at all.

The Corporal stared at the screen to keep himself distracted, back and head straight, his free hand balled into a fist and pinned to his side. He tried not to fidget, but it didn't help matters any that he was left standing while Kururu was perched in a chair, and Shupepe was slightly bent over between them to work on their rings. It almost felt as if the blue guy was taking his sweet time with the process, much to Giroro's everlasting irritation.

"Corporal, could you _please_ try to be calm? I can't synchronize your signature when you're so tense. You're acting like you were caught with your hand in the cookie jar." Shupepe chuckled. "And try not to be so twitchy. I'm afraid I forgot to pack a second long wire for this since _someone_ went messing through my things without permission." He shot the sheepish tadpole a scolding look, and Tororo ducked behind the Corporal with a small chuckle.

Giroro scowled harder and his face flushed even warmer at Tororo's actions, then his shoulders squared when the Medic's smile grew. Kururu bit back a laugh and squeezed the Corporal's hand a little tighter. If Giroro hadn't known any better, he'd say they were all in cahoots.

The skin contact made the red soldier anxious, pale and twitchy as he realized Kururu's palm was a lot softer than the average soldier. Kururu either took good care of his skin, or he just had baby-soft hands, and it made the Corporal's heart throb even harder. He was sweating buckets and he had no idea why his head was spinning, or why his heart felt like it was going to burst out of his chest. His surroundings felt as frigid as ice.

The more conscious he became of Kururu's fingers over his hand the more frazzled he felt, and the more difficult it became to push the thoughts away.

Not wanting to waste any more time and energy, Giroro drew in a deep breath and closed his eyes. He tried to keep his mind clear and ignore the yellow thumb stroking his skin. The corners of his mouth twitched as he tried to suppress the feeling. He wanted nothing more than to squeeze and crush the annoying mitt, but he knew too well Kururu thrived in pain and chose not to do that just to spite him. If Kururu was goading him for a reaction then he would give him none.

Tororo held back an amused grin when a vein bulged on the side of Giroro's forehead.

In the end the Corporal's torment was worth it. Shupepe managed pin down the slowing signature and match Giroro and Kururu's tempo. He held his breath and waited for the green light to confirm it had been a successful match. The screen made them wait for a good fifteen seconds before the light blinked, and Giroro opened his eyes to see a synchronized wavy line in yellow and red within the middle screen.

Shupepe input a password, registered the code, and then unplugged the wire before gathering everything back into the briefcase. He announced the bracelets were now all registered as pairs, but they needed to wait until everyone was present to finalize the group coding. That could wait, however, since the Admiral was having a meeting with the staff, and Rinono was still busy.

Giroro allowed himself a moment to relax, until Kururu moved his fingers and reminded him they were still holding hands. The Corporal wasted no time letting go and hugged his fist close to his chest, checking it as if it had been burned.

Kururu chuckled and turned back to his keyboard as if he was never disturbed, and Shupepe picked up the briefcase and left with Tororo tailing behind him, heading towards the lower floor. Giroro looked up at the Queen Bee's seat and could see the subtle motion of Garuru still present. His brother hadn't said a word.

Noticing the distracted gleam in those dark eyes, the Sergeant Major spoke without bothering to face Giroro. "You're still on break, Corporal, so why don't you go take a nap? I think that old heart of yours requires a well-deserved rest, kuku."

Giroro, not trusting himself to say anything due to the prickling in his skin, turned away with a grunt, aiming to go back to the lower floor and catch up with Shupepe and Tororo before they got too far. The sooner he got out of Kururu's sight, the better. Now that the bracelet had been registered he could figure out how to use it and link it to his gallery. He needed to get his mind off the tingling sensation.

As he went from the bridge to the bottom floor, Giroro fingered the bracelet and rolled it around. He looked over the flawless surface reflecting his image and wondered what kind of alloy it was made from. It looked pretty sturdy, yet it wasn't as heavy as actual reinforced steel. Such a strange device. Was it a new Keron Army item, or something his brother had requested to be customized on a whim?

In the storage room, Giroro found only Rinono with a clipboard, scribbling something. He saw neither Shupepe nor Tororo. Had they gone into the dormitory?

"Looking for something, Corporal?" Rinono called out and crossed the distance to stand before him, a twinkle in her eyes and a cheerful smile on her face.

Flustered, Giroro scratched the back of his head. "Ah, I was looking for Chief Medic Shupepe, do you know where he went?"

She blinked at him and arched a brow. "Weren't we supposed to gather at the bridge later on? If he's not there or at the office, then he might be in the dormitory." She tucked the clipboard under her arm and then presented her bracelet, rolling it around. The Corporal watched as Rinono positioned the sockets under her thumb and pinched the space between them. Giroro stared closer at the ring when it revealed a tiny black screen with a blinking green dot. Rinono brought the item closer to her face. "Shupepe, this is Rinono, do you read me?"

There was static and some scrambling interference, then after a moment the Medic's voice came through. "Clear! Sorry, was working on the radio." His voice had noisy scratching sounds. "I think the transmission is having issues with something aboard the ship. We'll have to try and tune it out when everyone's gathered. Tororo and I are working on that right now." Some more static followed, worsening for a second or two before it cleared again, only to get staticky once more. "Blasted thing… urgh, anyway, you need something?"

"The Corporal is looking for you." She smiled, guessing her brother already found something to keep himself occupied.

At first all they heard was static, but Giroro thought he heard Tororo's chuckles and other noises he was unable to pinpoint due to the terrible transmission. "I'm kind of busy, sis, could you handle it for me? Thanks." Shupepe spoke a lot faster then usual and the connection died before Rinono could even get a word in.

Giroro and Rinono looked at each other and shared a moment of silence, then shrugged.

"So, uh, what was it that you wanted?" She let go of her bracelet and the tiny black screen vanished.

"I just wanted to ask what the bracelets functions were. I need to establish a link to my gallery in case I need a weapon at hand." Giroro didn't know how well the recruit knew her gadgets, but if the Chief Medic asked her to handle it, then maybe she knew what these rings were even for.

"Oh? I thought the Admiral didn't want you using those." She frowned and tilted her head sideways; she was pretty sure his gear was too old to be of any use in their mission. Then again, she had no experience or knowledge of these things.

"Maybe, but I'd feel a lot better knowing I have some sort of backup." Giroro crossed his arms over his chest and smiled, stepping into an easier stance. He had a strange thought: why was it so simple to be so casual near Rinono? How was it that such a nice lady was even related to the Sergeant Major. They were nothing alike, even in terms of appearance; the only similarities he could see between the two were the jaw line and the shoulders, but physical traits hardly counted for anything.

"Oh, in that case I can help you." She grinned wide, placed the clipboard in nearby crate, and presented her bracelet to the Corporal. "Show me yours and I can give you a quick explanation."

Showing his wrist, Giroro watched Rinono roll hers clockwise until the sockets were facing down. While Giroro imitated her actions, Rinono pressed the bottom side of her ring to reveal another black screen, only this one had been divided into four smaller squares with four tiny buttons at the bottom. "This is the main interface, from here you can choose what basic functions you can customize into your ring. Just note you can only list four things. Shupepe said they're limited because they're only distributed to us, and while they've been under development for a while they hadn't been tested in the field. So if you have any difficulty with yours, let him know, okay?"

"I'll remember that." The Corporal nodded once and pressed one of the buttons, and it popped up a small holographic list for him to choose from. Weapon customization, local area network, tracking signal, encyclopedia, meta resources, matter transporter, vehicle application, hotline, and two options left as question marks. Giroro inched his head away from the bangle in confusion at some of the options.

"Do you want me to explain any of these?" Rinono teased, able to tell Giroro had no clue what some of these even were. She grinned wider at his coy smile and nod. "All right, since you're a gunman you can only list up to five small weapons from the menu, because it requires a lot of power from the matter transporter when you're out of broadcast range." She pressed the first option on her ring panel to select and revealed five empty slots, and pressing one of them brought up a second holograph screen with the massive list of all weapons available aboard the ship.

Next, she explained the basic function of the local area network, and how it was linked to the hotline which was reserved for the Admiral. Giroro paid more attention to Rinono's words when the tracker option was brought up.

"Tracking signals are mostly used to find missing teammates since it has a heat sensor installed, and since Wasuru TE is a pretty cold place this option should work pretty well." She turned to the Corporal with a wary frown. "I just hope no one decides to take a nap in such weather, or else even the heat sensors won't be able to pick them up. Shupepe told me they can only work to a certain level of temperature sensitivity, so going into hibernation would easily be overlooked by the system. Any missing members will just freeze to death."

Giroro frowned at that piece of information. "How much about Wasuru TE do you know?"

Rinono thought for a moment and her frown became more obvious, then she spoke in a hushed voice. "Well, I think it's safe to share it with you, since you'll be out there with field work and all." She looked around the room before drawing closer. "Shupepe told me it's mostly a heavy-rock planet that is covered in snow and frost throughout the year."

She exited the option menu to pick up the clipboard and grabbed the pencil that was attached to a string. She flipped to an empty page and drew a circle. "Wasuru TE is the name given to the planet by the Keron Army decades ago, because it is one of the nearby planets they have conquered when they began invading the galaxy. The Admiral tells me Wasuru TE means 'the forgotten,' to represent that the resources on the planet had been depleted for so long it had been discarded." She glanced at him to make sure he was listening. "It wasn't until recently that something appeared on the planet's surface. We were gathered to see what could be done about it."

"What kind of thing?" Giroro tried not to let his scowl be too obvious, given how a recruit was granted more information than him unsettled him more than he cared to admit.

"I'm not sure. There was something about large blue-purple arches sprouting from the earth. Shupepe and said it would make sense when we get there." She confessed with a nonchalant shrug. Rinono stared at the Corporal, noticing his eyes contracted and his face pale. His jaw was a little slack and he leaned away from her as if stunned. "Corporal? Are you- ?"

"It's nothing," he hurried to say with a wave of his hand. "Please continue, tell me all you know." He motioned to the clipboard. It was best to let her continue and allow him a minute to calm his heart.

However, that tidbit unsettled him in the worst ways possible. This was bad, this was _really_ bad…

Rinono arched a skeptical brow and squinted an eye, not sure how to take his reaction. "All right then. The snow level is anywhere between ten to eighty feet thick, and slamming into condensed snow can hurt as bad as crashing into a purified block of crystallized titanium." She drew a wavier circle around the first to show the snow level. "And excuse my less than appealing artistic skill, Kururu has always been the gifted one when it comes to art." She laughed, earning an amused fanged grin from the much calmer Corporal. "The weather is mostly stable at the peaks but tends to have a lot of blizzards around the equator, because that is where the tundra and flatlands are found. That means fewer obstacles to block the wind." She drew a line across the globe to emphasize the point.

Giroro twitched the corner of his mouth when he noticed she marked a good chunk of the middle. It looked like the windy area was pretty large.

"The air on the planet is different than that of Keron and Pekopon, and it's a lot thinner the higher or lower you go as well, so you need to make sure the air-tank on the suits provided is in proper condition if you plan on going outside." She scribbled the word 'thin' at the top and bottom of the globe, with the word 'normal' written across the middle. "Though the snow deserts stretch on for miles, the planet is pretty small and the piled-up snow makes it look like a big snowball. It's about half the size of Pekopon, I believe." She drew two circles, one inside the other and wrote the planet names to show the size difference.

"Unfortunately under all that snow, there are a lot of gaps making it look more like that Pekoponian cheese with all the holes in it," she joked. "In any case, Wasuru TE is generally littered with canyons, chasms, and frozen lakes. There used to be an ocean, but all the snow froze it up into a giant block of ice. I don't think there's any marine life, and even if there was you'd need to dig real deep to get to them.

"In general, the planet's surface looks harmless due to all the snow, but if you're not careful or have no experience with tracking the old-fashioned way, you might just walk yourself into death pit." She wagged a finger to enforce the warning and then tucked the clipboard under her arm again. She popped open her ring's option menu once more and opened the encyclopedia. "Although Shupepe tells me the native alien species inhabits the underground, there's nothing in the records about them." The screen showed a large 'information unavailable' sign.

Giroro grit his teeth. It looked like Chief Medic Shupepe was withholding a lot of information regarding this entire mission. Why wasn't he sharing any of this? Was he under orders not to, or was it a need to know basis and they would only be told this when they arrived at their destination? Also, why did Rinono, a mere recruit, already have access to all of that when it was clear she was not suited to this sort of task in the first place?

Oblivious to the Corporal's thoughts, Rinono had her attention on her bracelet, and continued explaining the options. "Next is the encyclopedia. It's for the sake of looking up any possible information you may need regarding the nature of this planet, from herb names and types to animals that may be similar to the ones here, rock formations, as well as temperature, gravity, magnetic field, time zone, and climate sensors." She said and hit a symbol that looked like a magnifying glass at the corner of the screen, but that only brought up a large blank screen with yet another 'information unavailable' sign.

Much to Giroro's puzzlement, Rinono flinched back with a look of disbelief. "Hey, the map is gone! It was available when Shupepe and I first put these rings on; how did it go missing?" She scowled and started messing with the buttons below the screen, but the message remained unchanged. After a minute or two she gave an irritated grumble, which caused Giroro to inch back a little. "The thing must be broken, I'll have to tell Shupepe to take a look into it later."

"In any case, back on topic." She turned to the Corporal with a less pleasant expression, closing the search window and moving to the next option on the list. She explained the matter transporter and how it dealt with warping weapons and vehicle in case a quick ride is required on the field. She paused to shake the frown off her face. Being cranky was not serving her anything other than unwanted wrinkles. "We each get one snow mobile by default. They're somewhere in the garage?" She turned to Giroro.

"Yes, I think that would be a good idea." He nodded and crossed his arms over his chest. "If I can link a bike to my gallery that would be great on the long run." He grinned.

"Great, right this way then." She placed the clipboard on the crate again and led him towards the front of the room to the door leading to the garage. Rinono turned to the Corporal while she reached to the control panel on the wall. "Your rucksack's in the back room with the spare computer. We can go back for it afterwards." The small door opened, and she stepped inside with Giroro following.

The Corporal faltered in his step when he entered the garage.

Wide-eyed and slack-jawed for the third time that hour, he gawked at the massive monstrosities of battle suits, tanks, bikes and whatever else the Keron Army had available for its employees. Goodness gracious, had the army developed its weaponry this much since he had been dispatched to Pekopon? He could recognize some of them as upgraded models of the ones he knew, but most were machines and designs he had never seen before. He was sure the army's monthly magazine never brought any of these up in their preview articles, either.

Rinono walked by the large machinery without a second glance, having seen stranger and far more fearsome things despite her short affiliation with the army. Leading the Corporal through the hangar, she stopped by a set of bikes propped against the side of the room.

Giroro crouched down to get a better look. He could tell with a single glance they were heavy-duty, battle-ready, two-passenger snow mobiles, and dual-engine with what he assumed a flight mechanism. It even had water surfing options. From the runners attached at the bottom, and the sides looking rounder and pronounced like wings ready to sprout, he would bet booster engines were installed for maximum speed and maneuverability over soft snow.

It would be easy for a bike to sink in the snow, so the faster it was the less likely it would plummet into a pit and get stuck, no matter how heavy the passengers were.

Giroro straightened up from his hunched position and fixed his eyes at the gorgeous piece of machinery. After a second look he could see parts that resembled Kururu's style.

"Originally, Kururu was the one who designed these, but the Admiral wanted them to look a bit more streamlined so their exterior got a facelift." Rinono crouched down to look at the front lenses, a hand on her cheek. She trailed a finger over the smooth surface of the machine. "If he finds out the Admiral edited them, though, he is gonna have a fit." She rolled her eyes and stood up with a wary grin. "I guess it comes with the boundaries of being artistic. Kururu can be so passionate about these things it gets downright scary."

Giroro bit back a scoffing laugh. Kururu? Artistic and passionate? That was the most _absurd_ thing he had heard all day. If he didn't know any better, he'd say Rinono was talking about someone else completely.

Although… being a revolutionary and resourceful genius, a powerful military figure with reliable fighting skills, a master cook, an adequate artist, a flamboyant musician _and_ an admirable craftsman all in one, Giroro couldn't help but wonder why the Sergeant Major was still single.

Oh, wait… a horrendous and despicable personality. Right…

Giroro raised a wrist to present his ring and turned to the recruit with an arched brow and a casual grin. "Regardless of who made what, how do I register a bike?" Seeing the toys was all nice and dandy but it didn't tell him how to add them to his system for later use.

"Oh that's easy, just access the main menu and go to the vehicle application." Rinono stepped closer to the bike and moved her hand behind the glass, she pulled out a small pamphlet-looking item and presented it to the Corporal. "Here are the bike's registration papers. The code should be somewhere in there."

The Corporal accepted the paper with a thank you and unfolded it. Looking through the text he found interesting tidbits regarding the engine type, functions, durability and machine-related information. It looked like a well-balanced model of strength and speed as well, one of Kururu's best non-battle machines so far. On the last sheet were a long code and a PIN-code. Giroro thought that might be the part he needed to register.

He watched Rinono look at him with a cheerful smile, but he was unable to match her casual mood due to the troubled thoughts swarming his mind.

Kururu and the Admiral were being cooperative enough, but they were also being docile with one another despite Shupepe and Rinono insisting those two did not like each other. Kururu and Shupepe seemed to be at odds, and yet they tried not to make it too noticeable.

Kururu was open and cooperative with Giroro when the mission started, but then became distant. What had happened during the past few hours to make Kururu act so different? Did it have anything to do with that punch he received when he crossed the line, back in the dormitory on the Grand Star? Did Giroro hit a nerve that badly? Kururu had been acting distant around him since then and Giroro wasn't sure how to take it.

Was Kururu just trying to get Giroro off his case? The Corporal wasn't sure and whatever the case may be, he needed to have a word with the Sergeant Major anyway. Rinono's cooperation helped clear some of the fog over the nature of their destination, and Kururu would probably like to know about it as well.

Maybe when he was given the chance, Giroro would let Garuru know too. He just hoped neither of them were already aware and that he wasn't the one left in the dark.


End file.
